Social responsibility of the international mining companies in the democratic republic of Congo

The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is one of the important mining countries in the World. The country is endowed with extensive mineral riches which mainly include copper, cobalt, gold, coltan, cassiterite, diamond, iron-ore, bauxite and many others. According to Morgan (2009), the DRC has an estimated $24 trillion worth of mineral reserves. The World Bank report (2008) indicates that all provinces are rich in minerals with Katanga representing dominant mineral wealth. In addition to mining, DRC has other natural resources in abundance such as the mega- biodiversity, freshwater reserve, tropical ecosystem, hydroelectric potential of 100,000 MW, vast agricultural land, as well as an important human capital and cultural heritage. Hundreds of companies, mainly international, currently exploit the DRC’s mineral wealth and especially the Katanga Province.