On May 21, the European Parliament voted on a draft regulation to propose mandatory certification on EU companies sourcing in conflict areas when importing minerals from developing countries. According to this proposal, EU companies importing minerals such as tin, tantalum, tungsten, and gold must provide information on policies including human rights, anti-corruption, and due diligence along the complete supply chain from the sourcing site to the final product. These companies must publicly report on their supply chain due diligence.
The EP vote goes further than the Commission proposal and the preliminary EP vote in Trade Committee (INTA) which only proposed voluntary certification for the importing companies. Before the vote, FIDH and other organisations had specifically requested that the Members of the European Parliament propose a more ambitious piece of legislation imposing a mandatory scheme for all the concerned companies along the supply chain.
The draft regulation will now be jointly examined by the European Parliament, the European Commission and EU Member States to lead to a final law. Mobilisation must continue to ensure that a mandatory and comprehensive reporting system remains and that a strong monitoring mechanism be put in place.