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The Independent UK
The Independent UK
National
By Moses Sawasawa

PHOTO ESSAY: Congo coltan miners dig for world's tech — and struggle regardless of who is in charge

Congo-Coltan Mining - (Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)

Nestled in the green hills of Masisi territory in Congo, at the artisanal Rubaya mining site, hundreds of men labor by hand to extract coltan, a key mineral crucial for producing modern electronics and defense technology.

Rubaya lies in the heart of eastern Congo, a mineral-rich part of the Central African nation which for decades has been ripped apart by violence from government forces and various armed groups.

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