'About this Agreement'

...the metals sector runs an increased risk of violating human rights, fundamental labour rights, and environmental and biodiversity standards and of having a negative impact on local communities. Moreover, the supply chains for many raw materials offer only limited transparency...

IRBC [international responsible business conduct] agreements are a means for the business community and other stakeholders to improve their performance with regard to international responsible business conduct. A number of companies are already in the process of identifying and addressing risks...

The agreement will also help the metals sector prepare for the EU’s Conflict Minerals Regulation, which will enter into force in 2021...

The agreement specifically covers all metals and the entire international metals supply chain, including metals processing companies and end-users. Most of the Dutch metals supply chain consists of SMEs. They supply base metals and semi-finished products to the automotive, construction, chemicals, aerospace, electronics and other industries... The supply chain is highly international in scope and includes metals recycling.

The agreement focuses on national and international metals companies with the aim of improving the visibility of the entire supply chain and maximising the impact of the participants’ collective activities.