Tech’s hidden cost: why innovation owes a debt to Congolese communities — and how “Tech Peace for Congo” can help repair it

Every time we unlock a phone, send an email, or drive an EV, we touch a supply chain that runs through the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Congo supplies most of the world’s cobalt, a metal that helps our batteries stay small and powerful. Yet the people living closest to this wealth are still among the poorest on earth. That disconnect isn’t an accident of economics; it’s a design choice we can change. U.S. Geological Survey

The extraction paradox

Congo accounts for roughly three-quarters of global mined cobalt. Demand has soared with smartphones, laptops, and electric vehicles. But the benefits haven’t flowed to ordinary Congolese families. An estimated 73.5% of Congolese lived on less than $2.15/day in 2024, and the country remains one of the poorest globally. The value is captured elsewhere—at the refining plants, in downstream manufacturing, and in the margins of global brands. U.S. Geological Survey

The human impacts are not abstract. Investigations have documented forced evictions, violence, and loss of livelihoodsaround expanding industrial cobalt and copper projects. These harms are preventable—and they’re exactly the kinds of risks responsible companies must identify, avoid, and remedy. AP News

At the same time, supply dynamics and policy choices can amplify vulnerabilities. Price swings, export restrictions, and quota systems can ripple through local economies, while traceability and oversight remain uneven—especially in regions affected by conflict and weak infrastructure. Reuters

Bottom line: technological progress has been subsidized by communities who rarely see its rewards.

“Reparation” as repair, not guilt

When I say reparation, I mean repair—a practical framework to correct a pattern of extraction without shared prosperity. It’s not about blame; it’s about redesigning incentives so Congolese children inherit more than holes in the ground and roads to nowhere.

A fair deal asks tech companies and consumers to share responsibility for three things:

1. Value — more local benefit from each device sold that relies on Congolese minerals.

2. Verification — real due diligence from mine to motherboard, with public proof.

3. Voice — communities involved in decisions, with access to remedy when harms happen.

This is achievable. The OECD Due Diligence Guidance lays out a tested, step-by-step process for responsible sourcing in conflict-affected and high-risk areas. And in the EU, the Battery Regulation (EU) 2023/1542 makes supply-chain due diligence a legal obligation from August 18, 2025, pushing the market toward transparency and accountability. OECD+1

(A quick nuance: the share of cobalt coming from artisanal mining has fallen in recent years, but it still carries high human-rights risk per unit of output—so due diligence and community safeguards remain essential across all mining models.) Cobalt Institute

Introducing Tech Peace for Congo: a practical path to repair

Tech Peace for Congo is a simple idea with outsized impact: if technology has extracted value from Congolese soil, then technology—and all of us who use it—can put value back in ways that are visible, measurable, and led by communities.

Here’s how:

• A micro-contribution per device: A voluntary $1–$5 per device (or per battery/phone/EV sold) paid into a transparent Community Repair Fund. Funds are ring-fenced for front-line priorities—education, health, and livelihoods—in mining-affected areas. (Our pilot focus is mobile learning for displaced children and youth, delivered through offline-first tablets and community facilitators.)

• Traceability with teeth: Companies that join commit to the OECD five-step due diligence process and publish supplier lists, risk assessments, and corrective actions. They align with the EU Battery Regulation by integrating human-rights and environmental checks—then go further by making results public. OECD

• Local value creation: The fund backs skills training, device repair hubs, and local service jobs around digital learning and safe tech use. The goal is clear: reduce the gap between where minerals are dug and where opportunity grows.

• Community-led oversight: A mixed board—local educators, youth leaders, faith leaders, women’s groups, and technical experts—sets priorities, approves grants, and reviews complaints. Grievances aren’t buried; they’re tracked to resolution.

• Open dashboards: Anyone can see how much money came in, where it went, and what changed: schools reached, hours of instruction delivered, clinics equipped, water points built, grievances resolved.

What participation looks like—for companies

If you build batteries or devices, this is straightforward and good business:

1. Map and assess your supply using the OECD framework; publish salient risks and your mitigation timeline.

2. Prepare for EU due-diligence compliance—Article 48 is clear on due diligence policies and auditing; don’t wait for enforcement to catch up. EUR-Lex

3. Join the Community Repair Fund with a per-unit contribution and transparent reporting.

4. Fund independent monitoring—local organizations verify outcomes, not just consultants flying in and out.

5. Remediate harms promptly where your supply chain has contributed to abuse or displacement, consistent with the UN Guiding Principles and OECD expectations. OECD

What it delivers—for communities

• Education continuity for children in mining and conflict-affected zones through mobile classrooms, offline content, and trained local facilitators.

• Income and dignity via community tech roles (device maintenance, learning support, safe-tech training).

• Agency through a say in priorities, budgets, and remedy.

• Evidence: fewer dropouts, better learning outcomes, safer workplaces, resolved grievances.

How you can help—today

• If you work in tech or autos: champion this model internally. Ask procurement to map cobalt supply, publish risks, and join Tech Peace for Congo.

• If you lead a brand: add a micro-contribution for each device and report publicly on the funds.

• If you’re a consumer: support companies that commit; ask others to join; donate directly to the Community Repair Fund to expand mobile classrooms now.

Innovation shouldn’t deepen inequality. The DRC can remain the heart of the battery age and become a place where children learn, families thrive, and communities decide their future. We already know what responsible sourcing looks like; the policies and guidance exist. What’s been missing is a fair value loop back to the people whose land powers our devices.

Tech Peace for Congo is our invitation to close that loop—to repair what extraction alone has broken and to build a technology economy that is worthy of the word “innovation.”

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Key references for readers who want to go deeper:

• USGS Mineral Commodity Summaries 2025 – cobalt production shares. U.S. Geological Survey

• World Bank – DRC poverty overview (updated Oct 1, 2025). World Bank

• Amnesty/press coverage – documented abuses tied to mine expansion. AP News

• EU Battery Regulation (EU) 2023/1542 – due diligence obligations from Aug 18, 2025. EUR-Lex

• OECD Due Diligence Guidance – practical steps for responsible sourcing. OECD