Society Artisanal Achieves Major Milestone in Exporting First Artisanal, Blue Mines Validated, Conflict-Free Gold from Democratic Republic of Congo

**Kinshasa, DRC, Nov. 1, 2024** - Society Artisanal, in collaborationwith its esteemed partners USAID and the Government of the Kingdom of theNetherlands, proudly announces the successful export of the first third-partyvalidated, artisanal, conflict-free, clean gold from the Democratic Republic ofCongo. The gold was responsibly sourced with Society Artisanal’s Cooperativepartner, COMIDEFI, from a site in Fizi territory, South Kivu province, whichwas certified with the new blue status by the DRC government. It was exported toL’Orfebre Gold Refinery in Andorra. This landmark achievement is theculmination of several years of dedicated effort to de-risk some of the mostchallenging areas in eastern DRC by the DRC government with support from theUSAID-funded Zahabu Safi (“Clean Gold”) project and the Dutch-funded Madini kwaAmani na Maendeleo (“Minerals for Peace and Development”) project.

Thesuccess and sustainability of this model are the result of close cooperationwith the local administration and traditional chiefs, benefit sharing withlocal communities and economic partnerships with artisanal mining cooperatives.This effort has been made possible by key players such as the local, provincialand national technical services of the Ministry of Mines: SAEMAPE, CEEC, CAMI,CTCPM and the Division des Mines, including the Secrétariat Général aux Mines,and with the support of provincial and national mining ministers. TheCollaboration with the ICGLR via the Madini Project has also been of keyimportance in this process. The same applies to the multi-stakeholderstructures (Comité Provincial de Suivi des Activités Minières “CPS” and all itslocal branches), where the presence of civil society complemented the roles ofthe private sector and government in the process. The Madini and Zahabu Safiprojects provided technical guidance and support to Society Artisanal and DRCauthorities to implement to new blue status of artisanal mines and supportedSociety Artisanal’s collaboration with due diligence consulting firm Max Impacton risk evaluation and mitigation.

"Society Artisanal is honored tohave collaborated with all of these vital partners and looks forward tocontinuing to prove that investing in DRC and developing mutually beneficialeconomic models is the best solution to positive outcomes in the Country,"said CEO Jason Clarke. "This successful export demonstrates our commitmentto creating sustainable economic opportunities for local communities, whileimplementing responsible mining practices for enduring mineral supply chains.Society Artisanal takes responsible sourcing seriously and is implementingblockchain traceability with our technology partner, Minespider, in each of ourmine sites. Such technology ensures the provenance of all future gold exports.Due to the dedicated work of each of these partners, the future looks brightfor DRC and those companies and communities who choose to establish the rightfoundation.”

Society Artisanal aims to build on thefoundational work done in collaboration with trusted partners like USAID andthe Government of the Netherlands to maintain a steady supply of clean gold,support local communities, and promote responsible sourcing in the region.

For further information, please contact:

Jason Clarke
CEO
Society Artisanal
contact@societyartisanal.com