This Mine is Mine! How Minerals Fuel Conflicts in Africa

Nicolas Berman 1 Mathieu Couttenier Dominic Rohner Mathias Thoenig
1 GREQAM - Groupement de Recherche en Économie Quantitative d'Aix-Marseille
Abstract : We combine georeferenced data on mining extraction of 14 minerals with information on conflict events at spatial resolution of 0.5 o x 0.5 o for all of Africa between 1997 and 2010. Exploiting exogenous variations in world prices, we find a positive impact of mining on conflict at the local level. Quantitatively, our estimates suggest that the historical rise in mineral prices (commodity super-cycle) might explain up to one-fourth of the average level of violence across African countries over the period. We then document how a fighting group's control of a mining area contributes to escalation from local to global violence. Finally, we analyze the impact of corporate practices and transparency initiatives in the mining industry.
Keywords : Armed Civil Conflict Natural-Resources War Curse Colombia Greed Oil Institutions Corruption Grievance
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Journal articles
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https://hal-amu.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01633984
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Submitted on : Monday, November 13, 2017 - 3:52:43 PM
Last modification on : Monday, March 4, 2019 - 2:04:16 PM

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Nicolas Berman, Mathieu Couttenier, Dominic Rohner, Mathias Thoenig. This Mine is Mine! How Minerals Fuel Conflicts in Africa. American Economic Review, American Economic Association, 2017, 107 (6), pp.1564-1610. ⟨10.1257/aer.20150774⟩. ⟨hal-01633984⟩

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