Even here in some of the world’s most remote villages, farmers are asking questions about the changing seasons. They observe the rains becoming scarcer and temperatures getting higher. Meanwhile, in the world’s wealthy metropoles policymakers and business leaders claim humanity is transitioning to ‘green energy’. Observers say that the Democratic Republic of Congo and its resources can be part of the solution to a global crisis. Perhaps that's the good news.

In the territory of Manono,Tanganyika province in the southern DR Congo, vast deposits of lithium are being explored, an estimated 400 million tonnes. Companies and individuals are rushing to Manono in search of this resource. LIthium is integral to the manufacture of lithium-ion batteries which are publisized as essential to a green transition and an end to the global reliance on fossil fuels.


The bad news, according to our assessment, is that the local population, the Mononoais, are not sufficiently informed about lithium mining. They have not been supplied information on lithium extractions' potential environmental impacts, what the metal’s applications are and what its extraction could mean for the community.

Manono has long been known for its subsoil. Manono city was established by Belgian settlers in the 1940s. Its tin ores, in particular cassiterite, have been mined in the region since start of the 20th century. Any Congolese secondary school pupil knows of the territory and its abundant tin riches. During our visit to Manono in May the local people told us the territorial capital, takes its name from a hill called Kaulu-minono (the sharp stone in Kiluba).
We spent three weeks in Manono in May 2022. Locals explained that during the colonial epoch the Belgian colonist’s mining company, Geomine, improved the region’s social and economic situation. They (SP - how many people?) described how Geomine’s employees were entitled to free health care and a food ration at weekends. Those in charge through that time planted mango trees throughout Manono town and constructed public buildings, including a cathedral. After colonisation, the Geomines changed its name to Zaire Etain before becoming Congo Etain under Laurent Désiré Kabila and the Alliance des Forces Démocratiques pour la Libération du Congo-Zaïre (AFDL).

With the war of the Rassemblement Congolais pour la Démocratie (RCD), known as the war of aggression, industrial mining activities stopped and the RDC movement’s rebels exported the coltan that was stockpiled during the exploitation of cassiterite. Industrial mining ground to a halt and was replaced by artisanal mining. Mainly conducted by people from Kivu according to..?. Today, Monono’s entire local economy is dependant on artisanal extraction, according to the observations made over nearly one month of field research.

Over the last 15 years, new private sector companies have arrived in Manono, acquiring mining titles via joint-ventures with state-owned companies or contracts with the Congolese state. In Manono, Congo Etain, a state-owned company, became the Congolaise de l'exploitation minière (COMINIERE), a commercial company created on 12 April 2010 in which the Congolese state is the main shareholder.

IN 20** Cominiere entered a joint venture with a company called DATHOMIR, owned by Chinese national Cong Maohuai, to set up DATHCOM. In 20**, an Australian mining company, AVZ Minerlas entered the scene, paying a USD 6,000,000 pas-de-porte to who? - a fee that is normally USD 5,000,000 according to which source?. Other companies are also trying to get a piece of Manono’s valuable mining concessions. A series of lawsuits have sprung up over exactly who owns what, and with who. However, despite the hype and the global demand,  lithium extraction has not started yet.

Even so, Manono’s population is eagerly awaiting the start of lithium mining and the rehabilitation of the nearby Mpiana Mwanga hydro dam, that companies and politicians say will supply the region and mine with electricity. Manonois told us that they hope lithium mining will fund the rehabilitation and construction of medical institutions, such as the general hospital, and the construction and renovation of primary and secondary schools as well as roads and water supplies.

Todate, it takes a truck travelling from Manono to Kyolo - a distance of about 100km - take two weeks. The same applies for vehicles leaving Kalemie for Manono. And, despite being next to large bodies of water, the city of Manono is cruelly lacking water thats safe to consume. Citizens have two options to access water: by drilling wells or by traveling five kilometers out of town to a hardrock. But even these sources dont supply safe water. Almost all households rely on this dirty water and the risk of water-borne diseases is high.

During our time in Manono we found a population not sufficiently informed about the planned Lithium project. An indigestible mixture of hope and despair simultaneously filled peoples minds. There seems to be a serious negligence from companies and politicians who are legally obliged to foster communication between the themselves and the population. No one on the ground seems to know who is doing what, who is who and on whose behalf the different actors are working.

Simultaneously, Manono’s lithium is raising the communities hopes and expectations. You can listen to a local radio programme covering the hopes and fears of the local people, here. People We spoke with are still very nostalgic about the past when the industrial mining drove the economic and social development of Manono. 

The time has come for Monono’s citizens to be informed in a clear and unambiguous way. Manonoais must be given truthful and legible information so that they can have an unequivocal understanding of the project and its impacts into the future. Only then can they, in our opinion, ground their expectations and formalise the demands and circumstances underwhich Manono’s lithium can or cannot be extracted.  
The actors hoping to profit from Manono’s lithium must meet and preferably go beyond, the social and environmental responsibility inshrined in Congolese law. This should begin by making the environmental and social impact study undertaken by AVZ open to the general public. A legal requirement, a small step towards fostering and improving relations between all stakeholders and a moral duty to the local populations of Manono whos lives and environments are at stake.

It is our fervent hope that this project will contribute to the development of the communities affected by the project, taking into account their demands, priorities and wellbeing. It is our view that the first beneficiaries of lithium extraction in Manono should be the people living around and affected by the project, the people of Manono, and the DRC.

A local said to us during our time in Manono, "the foreigner has big eyes but does not see". They were implying that the companies can rush to exploit and export lithium from Manono. But, if they do not respond to the needs of the communities, they will not enter their hearts and one day they may wake up faced with their anger and not know where to go.