Question

The Sustainable Development goal (SDGs) the essay should be on is goal 16 (peace and justice strong institutions). Look at the Mining industry in Africa (preferable Zambia in central Africa). Write everything in 1000 words.

I only want solution related to goal 16 and related to mining industry

Answer 1

In September 2015, the 193 United Nations (UN) member states adopted “Transforming our world: the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development”, which includes a set of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) for 2015-2030. The agenda provides a successor framework for the Millennium Declaration and the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) that covered the period from 2000-2015. The SDGs represent the world’s comprehensive plan of action for social inclusion, environmental sustainability and economic development.

The Goals, particularly through SDG 16, tackle another omission of the MDGs, that of governance, inclusion, participation, rights and security. The Goal’s aim is to “Promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels”.

The different sub-goals that make up SDG 16 are set out below. Because of our focus on participatory democracy and governance, we are particularly interested in two of these, namely:

16.6 Develop effective, accountable and transparent institutions at all levels

16.7 Ensure responsive, inclusive, participatory and representative decision-making at all levels

While the mining industry is diverse, the scope and nature of typical mining activities highlight some common opportunities to leverage and contribute to the SDGs.

For companies seeking to align their operations with the SDGs, the goals relating to social inclusion, environmental sustainability and economic development are a useful starting point:

Environmental Sustainability:

Mining activities typically cause impacts on land, water, the climate and the flora, fauna and people that depend on these resources:

– SDG6 – Clean Water and Sanitation, and SDG15 – Life on Land: Mine development requires access to land and water, presenting significant adverse impacts on lands and natural resources that can be mitigated or avoided.

– SDG7 – Energy Access and Sustainability and SDG13 – Climate Action: Mining activities, are energy and emissions intensive, presenting opportunities for greater efficiency as well as expanding access to energy.

Social Inclusion:

Mining can significantly impact local communities, bringing economic opportunities, but also challenges relating to livelihoods and human rights:

– SDG1 – End Poverty, SDG5 – Gender Equality and SDG10 – Reduced Inequalities: Mining generates significant revenues through taxes, royalties and dividends for governments to invest in economic and social development, in addition to opportunities for jobs and business locally. Mining companies can take an inclusive approach by working with communities to understand the mines’ actual and potential positive and negative impacts. Companies can also support participatory local decision-making processes regarding the mining operations, the equitable allocation of benefits and the resolution of grievances, and identify and expand opportunities to strengthen the voice and influence of marginalized groups, including women, to ensure that inequalities are reduced, rather than reinforced, by the economic opportunities a mine may bring.

– SDG16 – Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions: Mining can contribute to peaceful societies and the rule of law by preventing and remedying company-community conflict, respecting human rights and the rights of indigenous peoples, avoiding illicit transfers of funds to public officials or other persons, ensuring transparent reporting of revenue flows, and supporting the representative decision-making of citizens and communities in extractives development.

Economic Development:

Mining can have a local, regional and national impact on economic development and growth that can be leveraged to build new infrastructure, new technologies and workforce opportunities.

– SDG8 – Decent Work and Economic Growth: Mining can generate new economic opportunities for citizens and members of local communities, including jobs, training, and business development relating to mining operations, associated service providers, or new local economies linked to the mine.

– SDG9 – Infrastructure, Innovation and Industrialization and SDG12 – Responsible Consumption and Production: Mining can help drive economic development and diversification through direct and indirect economic benefits and by spurring the construction of new infrastructure for transport, communications, water and energy. Mining also provides materials critical for renewable technologies and the opportunity for companies to collaborate across the supply chain to minimize waste, and to reuse and recycle.

Reference :      mining_SGDs by world economic forum