Conflict coltan used in technology from major brands
Conflict coltan used in technology from major brands
https://globalwitness.org/en/press-releases/conflict-coltan-used-in-technology-from-major-brands/
Publish Date: 2026-07-07 11:53:00
Source Domain: globalwitness.org
Top lines:
- Five of the seven biggest coltan exporters from Rwanda have bought coltan smuggled from DRC mines occupied by the armed group M23.
- Global brands like Sony, Microsoft, Amazon, LG Display, Ericsson, Toyota, Nvidia and Vodafone source coltan from supply chains tainted with smuggled exports.
- Standards and industry schemes promoting responsible supply chains have largely failed to detect the conflict coltan.
London – According to a new investigation released by Global Witness today, tech giants are likely to have sourced minerals tied to conflict in the DRC, as many of the biggest Rwandan coltan exporters which they use do not have clean supply chains.
The mineral, essential for smartphones and computers, will likely have found its way into the products of brands like Sony, Microsoft, Amazon, LG Display, Ericsson, Toyota, Nvidia and Vodafone.
Little is known about who bought the smuggled coltan from the “largest contamination of mineral supply chains” but following a year-long investigation, Global Witness has found that five of the seven biggest exporters of coltan from Rwanda have bought conflict coltan.
The looted minerals come from Rubaya in the DRC’s North Kivu province, where 15% of the world’s coltan is extracted. M23, a Rwandan-backed military, group has illegally occupied the mines for the last two years, making them a main revenue source for its warfare.
M23 is responsible for severe human rights abuses including sexual violence and killings, as well as recruiting children for forced labour.
Following interviews with coltan smugglers, we found five of the seven largest Rwandan exporters buy conflict coltan from the DRC, selling them on from middlemen to smelters in China and Kazakhstan.
The investigation establishes the complicity of Rwandan officials as smuggling reaches unprecedented levels.
It builds on reporting from last year that revealed that the EU-based trader Traxys bought conflict coltan from Rwanda in 2024.
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