Two months ahead of COP29 in Baku, Azerbaijan, the Secretary-General of the United Nations, António Guterres, unveiled, on Wednesday 11 September, the results of a panel of experts’ work on minerals essential to the energy transition, co-chaired by Ditte Juul Jørgensen, Director General of DG ENER at the European Commission, and Ambassador Nozipho Mxakato-Diseko of South Africa.
The panel has put forward seven guiding principles and recommendations to promote fairness, equity and sustainability in mineral supply chains, which are essential to the energy transition and the ramp-up of renewable energies, according to a European Commission press release.
The panel aims to ensure responsible mining, protect human rights and encourage multilateral cooperation.
“By elevating environmental, social, and governance standards globally, the actions will elevate the level the playing field (...) unlocking more opportunities for economic actors that value high social and environmental standards”, explains the European Commission.
The main recommendations include the creation of a high-level advisory group of experts, a global framework for transparency and accountability along the value chain, and a global mining legacy fund.
“We cannot afford to repeat the mistakes of the past. I hope we can now turn these principles and recommendations into reality on the ground”, said Ditte Juul Jørgensen.
To see the panel’s report: https://aeur.eu/f/df1 (Original version in French by Pauline Denys)