CMR Area Covered
About the data
Companies should be taking steps to source minerals responsibly. However, laws on responsible sourcing of minerals tend to focus on the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and its neighbouring countries. As a result, companies may focus their efforts on the DRC or adjoining/covered countries rather than other countries where the trade in minerals is linked to conflict and human rights abuses. If a company's responsible sourcing policy covers all conflict-affected and high-risk areas - as opposed to just the DRC or Covered Countries - this would be a good sign that they take the issue seriously and are willing to go beyond the legal requirements.
Page 6 of the SEC Dodd-Frank Act provides a definition of “adjoining country”; they are also listed in this metric under Methodology.
Methodology
Identify what areas / countries the company's Conflict Minerals Report covers and select the relevant value from the list below:
- If the company says their due diligence only covers the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) that means they are doing less than the minimum requirements of the Dodd-Frank Act.
- If the company says their due diligence covers the DRC and its adjoining countries (DRC & Covered Countries) they are in compliance with the Dodd-Frank Act. The term “adjoining country” is defined in Section 1502(e)(1) of the Act as a country that shares an internationally recognised border with the DRC, which presently includes Angola, Burundi, Central African Republic, the Republic of the Congo, Rwanda, South Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda, and Zambia. (Source: Securities and Exchange Commission)
- If the company covers any country or area Beyond DRC & Covered Countries, they are going beyond the minimum requirements of the Dodd-Frank Act. If so, please provide information about the additional areas covered as a comment on your metric value.