Blockchain can help combat child labor in cobalt mines

Later this year, a project using blockchain technology is due to be launched in Africa to ensure that the cobalt used in smartphone and electric car batteries does not come from mines using child labor. The information comes from the Reuters news agency.

There are no details of who is behind the project or how exactly the person in charge would use the technology to achieve this goal. Today, the blockchain is more associated with cryptocurrency transactions, where it increases security and makes it difficult to identify the source of money.

A similar idea was presented during the 2017 Cobalt Development Institute conference, as noted by the iAfrikan website. The proposal is to create a barcode for artisanal mined cobalt in the Democratic Republic of Congo, which will be digitally captured and registered on the blockchain.

The blockchain is more associated with cryptocurrency transactions.

It is a technology similar to that used by the diamond mining industry. It allows the origin of the stones to be traced so that purchasing companies can be assured that the service was done without the use of slave labor.

The project may be beneficial to technology companies, as cobalt is an essential component in battery production. The price of mineral has risen in recent years due to the increase in international production of electric cars, mainly in China.

In 2016, an investigation by the NGO Amnesty International denounced Apple, Samsung, Sony and Microsoft, among other companies, for the use of mined cobalt by children. At the time, companies said they often checked on local suppliers to make sure that didn't happen.

Blockchain can help combat child labor in cobalt mines via TecMundo