Conservation, conflict and semi-industrial mining:The case of eastern DRC

Semi-industrial mining in and near protected areas ineastern DRC exacerbates violent conflict in three ways: 1)it fosters competition between political-military networks;2) it creates new, and exacerbates existing, conflicts; and 3)it intensifies popular grievances because of negative socialand environmental impacts. In a militarized environment,conflict and competition can spark violence and fosterpopular support for armed groups. Measures to curb miningin protected areas need to take these different effects onconflict dynamics into consideration. Policymakers anddonors need to ensure that such measures do not exacerbateconflict, competition and grievances by 1) fostering broadsupport for them among different (civilian and military)state agencies and at different administrative levels; 2)anticipating displacement effects; and 3) carefully assessingthe impact on local livelihoods