Takeaways on corruption risks in the global lithium supply chain: Insights from the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and beyond

Speakers: Sara Nicoletti, Anticorruption Coordinator, Resource Matters, Pedro Zapata, Program Officer, Natural Resource Governance Institute (NRGI) Chile, and Tatenda Chitagu, Associate, Oxpeckers Investigative Environmental Journalism.

• In the Congolese lithium sector, we observe similar trends to what we have seen in cobalt/copper: lack of transparency related to publication of contracts/ownership of companies; presence of politically connected intermediaries; opaque criteria for the attribution of permits.

• Corruption is a problem for local communities, who suffer great losses from poor governance and delays, but also for businesses, who operate in an unstable business environment.

• Lithium represents a huge opportunity for Congo and its people, but in order for it to be beneficial, it is necessary to break with old patterns, committing to transparency and accountability.

In Chile and across Southern Africa, lithium has rapidly become central to the global energy transition, yet governance structures have not kept pace.

• In Chile, lithium is still governed under legal frameworks designed for traditional minerals like copper, creating legal uncertainty and high administrative discretion that concentrates strategic decisions in the executive. The lack of a binding lithium law forces reliance on ad hoc measures and contract-based arrangements, pushing negotiations with dominant producers outside broader democratic debate and reproducing governance and transparency risks, even without outright illegality.

• In Zimbabwe, beneficiation policies have unintentionally fuelled smuggling due to limited capacity, weak border controls, and corruption, while poor oversight has also enabled mis-invoicing and under-declaration by larger operators.

Useful resources: Nine Red Flags in the Emerging Lithium Sector in the DRC On the trail of lithium smugglers in Southern Africa Locals slam Zimbabwe for turning a blind eye to Chinese miner’s violations

The full recording of the January 28 presentation is available here: