Initiatives for Communities and Society

Mineral resources such as tantalum, tin, gold and tungsten produced by the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and its surrounding nations, where civil war has raged non-stop since 1996, play an important role as raw materials for electronic components. However trading in these minerals becomes a source of funds for armed groups, which is a social issue because it not only fuels conflicts but also leads to human rights infringements such as forced labor and abuse of local citizens.

In light of this situation, the United States government has defined "tantalum, tin, gold, tungsten and minerals additionally recognized by the Secretary of State as conflict minerals" as conflict minerals, and has established a firm policy to cut off the flow of funds to armed groups in the DRC and surrounding nations through the transparency of transactions in conflict minerals. As a result of that policy, in August 2012, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) adopted final regulations regarding the use of conflict minerals. According to these regulations, companies listed on the United States stock exchange are obliged to identify the place of origin and the refiner of any minerals that serve as raw materials for parts included in their products and investigate and report any relationship to armed groups in the DRC.

Although the Yamabiko Group is not listed on the U.S. stock exchange, we agree with the intent of these regulations, and our policy is to never use conflict minerals produced in the DRC and surrounding nations in our products. Based on that policy, we are currently carrying out a conflict mineral investigation, and we will continue to ensure that we do not procure minerals that benefit armed groups that violate human rights.