Congo Plans Paramilitary Unit for Mines With US, UAE Funding
A worker at an artisanal cobalt and copper mine site in Kolwezi, Democratic Republic of Congo.
Photographer: Michel Lunanga/Getty ImagesThe Democratic Republic of Congo will create a paramilitary unit to police its mines with funding from the US and the United Arab Emirates, the country’s General Inspectorate of Mines said.
The agency will invest $100 million and deploy as many as 3,000 armed recruits by December, with a goal of 20,000 “mining guards” around the country by 2028, it said in an emailed statement on Monday.