[{"bbox": [85, 153, 341, 184], "category": "Section-header", "text": "## 2.2 Problem Analysis"}, {"bbox": [96, 200, 1135, 413], "category": "Text", "text": "The Ugandan government has identified infrastructure development, in combination with the mining sector, as key enablers for economic growth and sustainable development, in order to boost their contribution to the GDP and positive social change. Identification, formulation, scoping/feasibility and/or any other preparatory studies of relevance therefore need to be undertaken to support a pipeline of investments in sustainable infrastructure, through blending, grants and EFSD+ mechanisms. The thematic areas contemplated include tentatively: digitalisation, renewable energy, green industrialisation, smart mining, sustainable mobility, natural resources management, waste management and water & sanitation, environmental sustainability and climate action, and gender mainstreaming within the mentioned areas."}, {"bbox": [96, 438, 1135, 705], "category": "Text", "text": "From an **economic** viewpoint, the necessary infrastructure, frameworks, structures and skills for mineral processing and value addition are missing, causing the sector to operate below its full potential. The country's ban on export of raw mineral ore concentrates has significantly reduced the sectors GDP output. To address some of the challenges characterizing the ASM sector, the Mining and Mineral Act of 2022 seeks to facilitate the issuing of licences for artisanal and small-scale mining operations. The creation of small-scale licences and artisanal mining licences aims to formalize small scale and artisanal mining which are presently unregulated. ASM formalization has the potential to significantly expand the government's revenue base and improve the monitoring and regulation of small-scale mining in the country. Limited availability of geological data and information on legal requirements contributes to poor conditions for investments into the mining sector. As a result, investment in the sector has remained relatively low over the past decade, representing about 1% of total investments in 2019."}, {"bbox": [96, 729, 1135, 1023], "category": "Text", "text": "From a **social** development perspective, Uganda's mining sector is strongly characterized by the insufficient application of responsible sourcing requirements. To preserve market access of its mining sector, Uganda needs to strengthen its compliance with regional and international due diligence regimes related to conflict and human rights (EU Regulation 2017/82, OECD Due Diligence Guidance). This requires the strengthening of oversight capacities, as well as the development and implementation of transparent chain-of-custody systems on designated minerals. Moreover, the sector is coined by weak occupational health and safety standards, leading to recurrent accidents in particular in ASM. Making the sector a safer workplace would enhance its attractiveness and ensure that the benefits from economic activity around mine sites are reaped by the adjacent communities. Also, focusing on the social effects of mining allows to broaden the view on gender equality in mining, helping to make the sector more inclusive by acknowledging the contribution of women at different stages of the process, thereby promoting gender equality."}, {"bbox": [96, 1047, 1135, 1181], "category": "Text", "text": "The role of women in ASM is significant, as they make up around 30 per cent of the total workforce and up to 50 per cent in some regions. Although cultural and historical aspects have relegated women's participation to the periphery, women have always been part of the mining workforce. However, the cultural and institutional constraints women face have ensured their involvement in the most value-bearing places such as pits and fair markets is practically non-existent."}, {"bbox": [96, 1181, 1135, 1340], "category": "Text", "text": "Women face different economic challenges as a result of the lack of access to, use of and control over resourceful land and other productive resources, licences, finance, and geological data. In many cases, traditional beliefs prevent women from taking advantage of these economic factors and deny them any control over their earnings. At policy level, the existing discrimination against women often puts them at a lower order in policy decisions affecting them. The de jure and de facto inequity in access to and control over land and property rights constrains women from accessing various other determinants of mining business success, such as finance³."}, {"bbox": [96, 1365, 1135, 1552], "category": "Text", "text": "Lastly, low formalization of the ASM sector results in **environmental** degradation and lost tax revenue. Although the new Mining and Mineral Act of 2022 and the National Environment Act of 2019 create obligations for mining companies to avoid and mitigate negative effects on the environment, both industrial and ASM mining frequently lead to environmental degradation. Safeguarding an intact environment is essential to secure access to arable and non-contaminated land for future generations, thereby increasing the social acceptance of mining operations and distributing its benefits horizontally across society. A focus on mitigating the negative environmental effects of mining will also help neutralize the carbon footprint of the mining sector."}, {"bbox": [85, 1620, 725, 1647], "category": "Footnote", "text": "³ igf-women-asm-challenges-opportunities-participation.pdf (iisd.org)"}, {"bbox": [1038, 1681, 1144, 1707], "category": "Page-footer", "text": "Page 6 of 25"}]