Sec. 8. Usaid efforts to prevent child labor and forced labor in the mining industry of the DRC
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The Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development ( USAID ), in coordination with the Secretary of the Department of State and the heads of other relevant Federal departments and agencies, shall increase efforts to prevent child labor and forced labor in the mining industry of the DRC, including artisanal and small-scale mining, including by encouraging efforts— to expand citizens’ participation in local decision making; to enhance transparency and accountability of governmental decisions on the local, provincial, and national levels in the DRC, on the expenditure of public funds, and the entry into contracts and other agreements in the mining industry of the DRC, in particular contracts or other agreements entered into with PRC entities, including China Molybdenum, or PRC state-owned banks or financial institutions; to strengthen social infrastructure to enhance oversight of the mining industry of the DRC, including artisanal and small-scale mining; to provide basic protective equipment, including gloves, work-appropriate clothes, and masks; to develop the technical and business capacity of artisanal and small-scale miners, helping them comply with environmental, safety, and business regulations; to build entrepreneurial capacity in local communities in order to provide economically feasible alternatives to artisanal and small-scale mining; and to support the ongoing development of country-specific policies and implementation of the national strategy to combat trafficking in persons in the DRC, especially to prevent child labor and forced labor in the DRC.
The USAID Administrator, in coordination with the Secretary of State and heads of other relevant Federal departments and agencies, shall coordinate with bilateral and multilateral donors; the International Monetary Fund; the government of the DRC at national, provincial, and local levels; United Nations agencies; civil society and nongovernmental organizations, including faith-based organizations; and the private sector to combat trafficking in persons in the DRC, including by— supporting efforts by local and civil society organizations, including faith-based organizations, and the government of the DRC at national, provincial, and local levels to ensure the end of child labor and forced labor; promoting transparency and accountability of national, provincial, or local level government decisions in the DRC with respect to public funds and contracts and other agreements related to the mining industry of the DRC, in particular contracts or other agreements entered into with PRC entities, including China Molybdenum, or PRC state-owned banks or financial institutions; and undertaking efforts set forth in section 10(a) above.
In carrying out the activities described in this section, the USAID Administrator, in coordination with the Secretary of State and heads of other relevant Federal departments and agencies, shall seek to leverage additional private sector resources to end child labor and forced labor in the mining industry of the DRC, including artisanal and small-scale mining, by increasing cooperation between USAID and such other relevant Federal departments and agencies to better leverage the full spectrum of grants, technical assistance, and partnerships.