IGF Guidance for Governments: Managing artisanal and small-scale mining

The 'IGF Guidance for Governments: Managing artisanal and small-scale mining' provides a structured, three-phase framework for governments to develop and implement national strategies for artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM). It focuses on integrating informal activities into legal and economic systems while reducing social and environmental harms.

• The guidance outlines a three-phase process for managing ASM: Phase 1 (Getting Started) focuses on preparatory structures like task forces and context analysis; Phase 2 (Developing an ASM Management Strategy) involves creating a vision and tailored strategies for different ASM types; and Phase 3 (Implementing the ASM Management Strategy) covers execution, monitoring, and evaluation.
• To ensure an inclusive process, governments are advised to establish an ASM task force comprising key ministries (such as mining, land, finance, and environment) and a stakeholder consultation forum that is gender-balanced, transparent, and conflict-sensitive.
• A comprehensive context analysis is required before strategy development, consisting of seven components: a scoping study, government capacity assessment, sector assessment, impact assessment, political economy analysis, supply chain mapping, and geological/land-use mapping.
• Governments should categorize ASM practices into three levels: 'unacceptable' (illegal/criminal, such as child labour), 'poor' (to be discontinued over time), and 'good' (to be encouraged and promoted).
• The guidance recommends against a 'one-size-fits-all' strategy, suggesting instead that governments divide the ASM sector into types based on commodity, mechanization, scale, or deposit type (alluvial vs. hard rock) and prioritize them based on their net impacts.
• For each ASM type, the guidance proposes two complementary approaches: an 'economics approach' to realize economic potential (e.g., land allocation, supply chain initiatives) and an 'impacts approach' to mitigate harms (e.g., regulation, education).
• The 'impacts approach' can take three forms depending on government capacity: a 'license and regulate' approach (formalization through laws and sanctions), a 'promote good practices' approach (education and assistance), or a 'combined approach' using ASM zones or voluntary supply chain initiatives.
• To incentivize compliance with regulations, governments can use 'conditional assistance,' where support (such as equipment or water) is provided only to operations that hold licenses and obey rules.
• The guidance suggests that taxation should only be implemented if the estimated revenues outweigh the costs of collection and the economic costs of resulting non-compliance.
• For cross-border ASM management, the guidance suggests three institutional frameworks for cooperation between states: a Joint Working Group (for minor adjustments), a Cooperation Secretariat (for policy coordination), or a Border Area ASM Secretariat (for joint management of cross-border clusters).

APA

Paget, D., Garrett, N., & Crawford, A. (2017). IGF Guidance for Governments: Managing artisanal and small-scale mining. International Institute for Sustainable Development. https://www.iisd.org/sites/default/files/publications/igf-guidance-for-governments-asm_0.pdf

Chicago

Paget, Dan, Nicholas Garrett, and Alec Crawford. IGF Guidance for Governments: Managing artisanal and small-scale mining. International Institute for Sustainable Development, 2017. https://www.iisd.org/sites/default/files/publications/igf-guidance-for-governments-asm_0.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Paget |first1=Dan |last2=Garrett |first2=Nicholas |last3=Crawford |first3=Alec |title=IGF Guidance for Governments: Managing artisanal and small-scale mining |publisher=International Institute for Sustainable Development |date=January 2017 |url=https://www.iisd.org/sites/default/files/publications/igf-guidance-for-governments-asm_0.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{paget2017igf, author = {Paget, Dan and Garrett, Nicholas and Crawford, Alec}, title = {{IGF Guidance for Governments: Managing artisanal and small-scale mining}}, institution = {International Institute for Sustainable Development}, year = {2017}, month = jan, url = {https://www.iisd.org/sites/default/files/publications/igf-guidance-for-governments-asm_0.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }