February 4, 2017
The 2017 year will be marked by new challenges that ARM aims to overcome as part of its mission to improve the support provided to artisanal miners in Latin America, Africa, and Asia. This year our organization is undergoing a major transition, continuing to implement several key projects that formed the foundation of our activities, while beginning new innovative projects. Among them, project Cadenas de Paz will be central. It intends to establish a new standard called the "Market Access Standard", conceived as a passport that will lay out the accepted ground rules for all players in the artisanal and small-scale gold supply chain. This standard will be derived from a range of local and international consultations involving a wide variety of people interested in this concept. The objective is to facilitate access to international markets for mining organizations.
In the peace process initiated in Colombia in 2016, artisanal and small-scale mining activity plays a pivotal role by providing economic opportunities in remote and war-torn regions. ARM seeks to participate actively in this dialogue and share its experience in promoting ethical mining activity.
This year will also witness a strengthening of our support activities for certification, particularly focused on Peru and Colombia, where new project activities will allow us to assist more mining organizations on the path to certification. These activities are in response to the challenges in the market of meeting the increased demand for certified gold. Markets, and especially the public consumers, have a raised awareness of the risks associated with the social and environmental conditions in producing precious metals, not just for jewelry but also for coin minting and other uses. We are motivated by this good news to redouble our efforts to boost certifications, and the pool of mining organizations we work with give us hope for more certified mines and responsible gold production in the future.
Within the framework of the ratification of the Minamata Convention, ARM will continue to be deeply involved in supporting mining groups to improve their production practices, especially in the gradual elimination of mercury. Our team has been developing methodologies that are efficient and adapted to the sector. The national action plans that serve as a basis for compliance with the convention are largely based on processes that foster long-lasting and healthy changes in production practices.
On behalf of the entire ARM team, I wish you a happy new year full of challenges and aspirations.
Yves Bertran