The Government of Costa Rica has joined the Intergovernmental Forum on Mining, Minerals, Metals and Sustainable Development (IGF).
“On behalf of the IGF Secretariat, I am pleased to welcome Costa Rica as IGF’s 78th member country,” said Greg Radford, Director, IGF.
Mining has occurred in Costa Rica for hundreds of years. In 2011, after years of public opposition to open-pit mining stemming from widespread concern about environmental impacts, Congress enacted a nationwide legal prohibition on open-pit metal mining. However, artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM) has continued in the country. The protection of nature is important in Costa Rica, as evidenced by the country receiving the UNEP 2019 Champions of the Earth Award.
“Costa Rica will benefit from IGF’s support on ASM-sector governance and through opportunities for greater international and regional interaction,” added Radford.
“We are delighted to become members of the IGF,” said Andrea Meza, Costa Rica’s Minister of Environment and Energy, which governs the mining sector. “Through the IGF, we hope to learn from the experience of fellow resource-rich member countries to help Costa Rica develop policies to overcome mining governance challenges. Specifically, we’re seeking to use the IGF’s resources to help us develop better ASM policies that follow international best practices on SDG implementation in the mining sector.”
The IGF supports more than 75 member nations committed to leveraging mining for sustainable development to ensure negative impacts are limited and financial benefits are shared. It is devoted to optimizing the benefits of mining to achieve poverty reduction, inclusive growth, social development, and environmental stewardship. The International Institute for Sustainable Development has served as Secretariat for the IGF since October 2015. Core funding is provided by the governments of Canada and the Netherlands.