[{"bbox": [96, 152, 1135, 357], "category": "Text", "text": "Business and Human Rights and other international and regional human rights standards¹⁹. A baseline assessment conducted by the Human Rights Commission²⁰ found out, on the one hand, that the State has not adequately put in place laws, policies and practices to prevent, investigate, punish and redress human rights abuses that take place in, and are associated with, business operations and has not sufficiently set up expectations that Zambian businesses respect human rights. On the other hand, the study also underlined that very few businesses understood and have put in place measures to prevent, mitigate and remedy human rights abuses²¹."}, {"bbox": [96, 368, 329, 396], "category": "Section-header", "text": "## Minerals value chains"}, {"bbox": [96, 398, 1135, 1034], "category": "Text", "text": "Independently of the production trends, the real downside of this situation is that most of the time the minerals are exported as raw materials, due to underdeveloped industries along the related value chains. Increasing value addition in the mining sector is a key priority and goal for the country's 2030 Vision and one of the expected outcomes of the 8NDP, through local metal beneficiation and manufacturing. Looking beyond extracting value is also a priority of the current government. Nevertheless, the existing examples are few, and concerning only a few products. For instance, Kagem Emerald Mine complements its production with a full downstream value addition, through processing emeralds into cut, polished and finished gemstones for export. In the gold sub-sector, the Zambia Gold Company Ltd. has a mandate to participate in different stages of the gold value chains, including exploration, production, mine development, processing and marketing, thus driving both the formalization and growth of the gold sub-sector. In the copper sub-sector, only Mopani Copper Mines plc. (Zambia-IRH) has a full scale chain of processing copper into refined cathodes, while Lumwana Copper Mine (Barrik Gold Corporation), presently producing only copper concentrate is prospecting possibilities for downstream processing in country. Modest Chinese and Zambian-Chinese investments in small-scale smelting facilities contribute to the development of the informal processing sector, through influx of cheap technologies that play a role in small-scale value addition at the price of accelerated environmental degradation and negative social impact. The Zambian government is taking steps towards monitoring and eventually formalizing the informal mining/processing sector, but the results are yet to be seen. The recently held business forum on copper value chain has showed an increased attention of the Government to create the conditions for the transformation of copper in the country, particularly through partnerships, and identified a number of investment opportunities along the full value chain, particularly rapidly growing investments in copper cable and wire manufacturing, and recycling of mining waste."}, {"bbox": [96, 1045, 525, 1074], "category": "Section-header", "text": "## Artisanal and Small-scale Mining (ASM)"}, {"bbox": [96, 1076, 1135, 1452], "category": "Text", "text": "The Artisanal and Small-scale Mining (ASM) sub-sector has grown considerably in the recent past. It has become a crucial source of livelihood for many people in rural areas and also contributes to the country's socioeconomic development generally. The ASM is an important livelihood activity for millions of people in the developing world representing as many as 90% of the global mining workforce. ASM are characterized by non-adherence to environmental, health and safety regulations, which exposes them to toxic and hazardous working conditions and make them contributors of environmental disasters and damage. Non-Aadeherence is mainly the result of inadequate technical knowledge and skills and awareness of regulations. Environmental, social, legal, business and labour challenges hinder the potential of ASM to contribute to sustainable development. In Zambia, all mining operations with license below 400 hectares are considering as part of the ASM sector, and are administratively managed under the Artisanal and Small-Scale Mining Unit at the Zambia Revenue Authority. The recent efforts by the government to formalize the sector are a testament to the importance that the government attaches to the ASM sector. Notably, the government has commenced a process of organizing the ASM sector into"}, {"bbox": [86, 1501, 1144, 1573], "category": "Footnote", "text": "¹⁹ In 2023 the African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights passed Resolution No. 550 on business and human rights (BHR) in Africa and a Resolution on a Human Rights- Based approach to the Implementation and Monitoring of the African Continental Free Trade Area Agreement (AfCFTA)."}, {"bbox": [86, 1573, 925, 1599], "category": "Footnote", "text": "²⁰ https://www.humanrights.dk/projects/national-baseline-assessment-business-human-rights-zambia"}, {"bbox": [86, 1598, 1144, 1646], "category": "Footnote", "text": "²¹ https://globalnaps.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/The-Corporate-Responsibility-to-Respect-Human-Rights_Zambia-Case-Study-2-1.pdf"}, {"bbox": [608, 1654, 623, 1676], "category": "Page-footer", "text": "8"}]