icmm mining partnerships for development

8/8/2019 ICMM Mining Partnerships for Development

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Mining: Partnerships for

Development

POSITION STATEMENTJanuary 2010

Policy 2010-1


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OVERVIEW

ICMM members seek to be partners ofchoice for host countries and communities indeveloping mineral resources. Helping toensure that the companies investments inthese resources enhance social andeconomic development locally and nationally

is an important part of accomplishingthis goal.

Such broad development outcomes, however, are beyondthe exclusive control of companies. The approach takenby governments and other state agencies, as well as bydevelopment agencies, organized labour and civil societygroups, can shape outcomes as much if not more thanICMM member company activities (for example, the waysin which taxes on mineral revenues are spent bygovernments). Governments have core responsibilitieswhich need to be met. By working in constructivepartnerships with other stakeholders. ICMM member

companies can play a positive role.This point has been reinforced through research byICMMs Resource Endowment initiative which hasdemonstrated that large-scale mining can provide lowincome countries with an important, and sometimescritical, economic boost, helping them to reduce povertyand re-engage in the global economy. In those countrieswhere such positive outcomes have not been achieved,reforms to strengthen public sector governance, whetherat the national or regional levels, may hold the key toprogress. Companies can contribute to addressing suchgovernance gaps through involvement in multi-stakeholder partnerships.

The purpose of this position statement is to take forwardthe work of the Resource Endowment initiative whichwas developed in partnership with the World Bank Groupand the United Nations Conference on Trade andDevelopment (UNCTAD) by encouraging broadapplication of its recommendation for multi-stakeholderdevelopment-focused partnerships. It makes explicitICMM member companies commitment to activelysupport or help develop such partnerships at global,national and community levels.

ICMM hopes that an increasing number of governments,development agencies and civil society groups willfurther engage with ICMM members through such

partnerships to enhance minings developmentcontribution.

BACKGROUND ON ICMM PRINCIPLES ANDPOSITION STATEMENTS

All ICMM member companies are required toimplement the ICMM Sustainable DevelopmentFramework. This includes commitments toimplement 10 principles throughout theirbusinesses, to report in line with the GlobalReporting Initiatives (GRI) Sustainability ReportingGuidelines and Mining and Metals Sector

Supplement, and to obtain independent externalassurance that the ICMM commitments are beingmet (this framework is described in detail atwww.icmm.com).

The ICMM principles of particular relevance to thisposition statement are:

Principle 1: Implement and maintain ethicalbusiness practices and sound systems ofcorporate governance

Principle 2: Integrate sustainable developmentconsiderations within the corporate decisionmaking process

Principle 3: Uphold fundamental human rightsand respect cultures, customs and values indealings with employees and others who areaffected by our activities

Principle 9: Contribute to the social, economicand institutional development of the communitiesin which we operate

Principle 10: Implement effective andtransparent engagement, communication andindependently verified reporting arrangementswith our stakeholders.

In accordance with the principles, ICMM has alsodeveloped a number of position statements whichfurther elaborate member commitments toparticular issues. Company members are obliged tocomply with these statements by incorporatingthem into their operational practices.

The position statements on Transparency of MineralRevenues (May 2009) and Mining and IndigenousPeoples (May 2008) are also relevant to Mining:Partnerships for Development.

All ICMM member companies commit to implement and

measure their performance against a set of 10 sustainable

development principles. Where members have sought greater

clarity on some of the key challenges facing the industry,

ICMM has developed supporting position statements.POSITION

STATEMENT


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RECOGNITION STATEMENTS

ICMM members recognize:

research undertaken as part of the ICMM-led ResourceEndowment initiative since 2004 has highlighted thesuccess factors which allow investment in mining andmineral resources to be a significant driver of economicgrowth and poverty reduction and to help catalyze growth inlow income countries (see www.icmm.com/resource-endowment)

investment in mining and mineral resources does notalways lead to positive social and economic outcomes. Ananalysis for the Resource Endowment initiative of 33mineral dependent countries carried out in 2004 showedthat while around half had been broadly successful whenjudged against a range of socio-economic indicators, theother half had performed poorly, with many of thesecountries experiencing difficulties associated with theresource curse. This calls for greater effort to applyproven success factors as mining investment takes place

finding ways to enhance mining and minerals social andeconomic contribution is more important than ever. Forexample, a United Nations Development Programme

(UNDP) Human Development report from 2007/08estimated that there are around 1 billion people living onless than one dollar per day, while 40% of the worldspopulation or 2.6 billion people, are living on less than 2dollars per day

research indicates that the most important determinant ofwhether mining will contribute to economic growth andpoverty reduction is the overall governance framework,both corporate and sovereign. The Resource Endowmentinitiative findings point to the importance of sound publicsector management by national and regional governmentsand sound corporate governance

partnerships between companies, governments,

development agencies and civil society can help fill capacityand governance gaps where necessary and can also help toexpand, broaden and deepen the overall socio-economiccontribution from mining and metals investments. Thesepartnerships can drive progress on issues that companiesacting alone may not have the capacity or mandate toaddress. ICMM and its partners have identified thefollowing six priority themes:

1 Mining and poverty reduction2 Mining and economic development revenue

management3 Mining and economic development regional

development planning4 Mining and economic development local content

5 Mining and social investment6 Mining and dispute resolution.

Each of the six themes is described at www.icmm.com/mpd(first published in Ways Forward, Resource Endowmentspotlight series 03 in April 2006).

COMMITMENTS

In addition to existing commitments under the ICMMSustainable Development Framework, ICMM membercompanies commit to actively support or help developpartnerships with other stakeholder groups with the aimof enhancing the social and economic contribution ofmining through development partnerships. In practicalterms this means:

1 at the global level, members companies can either

individually or collectively through ICMM:

publicly and prominently support Mining:Partnerships for Development. This will constitute ahigh profile statement of willingness to work withdevelopment agencies, host governments, civil societyorganizations, and local communities to enhance miningand metals contribution to social and economicdevelopment (and is in line with ICMMs overall goal ofworking in partnership with stakeholders across therange of sustainable development issues.)

at appropriate international fora, actively encouragedevelopment agencies, governments, and civil societyorganizations to support Mining: Partnerships forDevelopment. In practical terms, this will mean

encouraging such stakeholders to join with industry indeveloping partnerships across one or more of the sixpriority themes set out above.

2 at the national and community levels, for major miningprojects or major potential investments in regions wheresocio-economic outcomes are highly uncertain or wherethere are significant opportunities to enhance suchoutcomes, member companies commit to:

develop an understanding of the social and economiccontribution of the project, including an analysis of thebarriers that might weaken this contribution

actively support or help develop partnerships orcollaborations with other stakeholder groups across oneor more of the six priority themes, with the aim ofensuring the projects full potential socio-economiccontribution is realized. Stakeholder groups with whomsuch partnerships will be developed may include keyinternational agencies (such as the UN Agencies, theWorld Bank Group, and bilateral donors), hostgovernments, civil society organizations, and localcommunities.

3 at the global, national and community levels, membercompanies commit to:

review, at suitable intervals, the relative success of thepartnerships and collaborations pursued under one ormore of the six priority themes which constitute Mining:

Partnerships for Development adapting these over timeas appropriate to ensure they continue to contribute tothe overall goal of enhancing the social and economiccontribution of mining; and

provide an overview of their work on suchpartnerships, as appropriate, in their annual externalreporting and communications.


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