Highlights and images for 4 November 2025

How can value addition in mineral supply chains be achieved? At the midpoint of the three-day Annual General Meeting of the Intergovernmental Forum on Mining, Minerals, Metals and Sustainable Development (IGF), delegates addressed this question by considering examples of successful policies and practices. Governments, mining companies, and independent experts shared experiences from diverse countries and contexts, including from Chile, the Dominican Republic, Morocco, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Sweden, and many others. 

On sustainability standards and producing countries, speakers acknowledged the array of existing standards, and argued that standards for different products ought to be comparable. Presenting the findings from a stocktake by the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) and the IGF, Djaheezah Subratty, UNEP, warned against creating a new standard for every emerging issue in the mining sector. Instead, she recommended that public policy and voluntary standards should work toward common goals.

Presenting the experience of Chinese companies conducting mining operations overseas, Rachel Zhou, Reach Advisory International and consultant to the China Council for International Cooperation on Environment and Development (CCICED), said Chinese companies are gradually aligning with international practices but many due diligence processes led by Chinese institutions are not recognized internationally. 

The AGM then considered a range of policy case studies. Abdulrahman Al-Belushi, Ministry of Industry and Mineral Resources, Saudi Arabia, presented his country’s diversification and moving away from oil and gas to creating the conditions for the expansion of other extractive industries, such as phosphate, aluminium, and zinc, as well as promoting tourism and sporting events. Speakers from Morocco, Chile, and the private sector emphasized key enabling factors for value creation, including a stable policy environment, adequate infrastructure and logistics networks, and investment in science, research, and development. Britta Sadoun, AMG Critical Minerals, further highlighted the importance of strong local partnerships. 

In the afternoon, participants turned their attention to what remains after a mining operation is over. Speakers presented ways in which abandoned mine lands have been turned into opportunities for nature rehabilitation and the development of cultural and recreational amenities. Peter Whitbread-Abrutat, Future Terrains International Ltd, presented the example of the Eden Project in Cornwall, UK, where gardens and other attractions have been built inside a former china clay pit. He said it has generated more than GBP 2 billion for the regional economy since its opening in 2001, after investments of around GBP 141 million in construction costs.

Joseph Ng'ang'a Kuria, Ministry of Mining, Blue Economy and Maritime Affairs, Kenya, presented Kenya’s work on transforming former artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM) sites into reforestation hubs, as part of its policy target to plant 15 billion trees by 2032. Estelle Levin-Nally, Founder and CEO, Levin Sources, drew attention to the possibilities for re-mining tailings, noting benefits such as reducing pollution and disaster risks, and enabling circularity.

The final plenary of the day reviewed environmental policies for mineral value chains beyond mining. Speakers affirmed the need for circularity and for bringing all stakeholders to the same table. As an example, Perrine Fournier, Trade and Forest Campaigner, Fern, highlighted ways to reduce the deforestation impact of the EU’s electric vehicle sector, which could favor technologies, such as sodium-ion batteries that have a smaller environmental footprint.