Congo-Kinshasa: DR Congo's Cobalt Exports Contain Unreported Uranium - Our Study Estimates the Global Nuclear Risk
Geological research suggests that significant quantities of unreported uranium are being exported from the Democratic Republic of Congo alongside cobalt shipments. The study models uranium concentrations in cobalt ore to estimate that thousands of tonnes of uranium have left the country since 2000.
Why it matters
The lack of oversight on uranium exports from the DRC poses potential global nuclear proliferation and security risks.
The southern region of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is known as the Copperbelt because of its rich deposits of copper and other minerals.
The area was the original source of uranium ore for the first nuclear weapons built by the US's Manhattan Project (1942 and 1947) . Two atomic bombs were then dropped on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945.
The Manhattan Project's main source of uranium was the Cobberbelt's Shinkolobwe mine in south-east DRC. It has been officially closed to excavation since 2004 .
The DRC hasn't officially reported any uranium exports in decades .
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