Summary: PeaceGold is a social enterprise, co-founded in 2013 by British ethical gold campaigner Greg Valerio MBE and the Congolese peacebuilding organisation Centre Résolution Conflits, that exports fully traceable artisanal gold from 11 mining cooperatives in Ituri Province, eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. In June 2026 it signed a long term supply and financing agreement with the London based gold offtake company SigraFi, bringing payments back to nearly 25,000 miners and workers in the supply chain.
What is PeaceGold?
PeaceGold is a social enterprise co-founded in 2013 by Greg Valerio MBE and the Congolese peacebuilding organisation Centre Résolution Conflits (CRC). It is working to create a fair and legal export channel for fully traceable artisanal gold from 11 mining cooperatives in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). In June 2026, PeaceGold signed a long term supply and financing agreement with SigraFi.
Who is SigraFi?
SigraFi is a UK based gold offtake company that buys gold under multi-year contracts from organised artisanal and small-scale mining cooperatives, mainly in the DRC, Zambia and South America, giving them guaranteed buyers, prefinancing and compliance support so they keep more of the value and their gold can reach institutional markets.
Valerio explains: “The deal is public acknowledgement that PeaceGold is a serious enterprise. Our new partnership with SigraFi will see certified PeaceGold bullion, mined by our 11 partner cooperatives in the Ituri Province of the DRC, come to market with payments finally flowing back to the nearly 25,000 workers connected to that supply chain.” It is a key piece in the puzzle of the social enterprise model that Valerio and his team have spent the past ten years fighting to make a reality in one of the world’s most challenging supply chains, and it opens the door to other financing options.
How is PeaceGold different from Fairtrade gold?
PeaceGold differs from other initiatives such as Fairtrade gold, another Valerio achievement, in that it is a self-perpetuating social enterprise in which miners receive a share in the profits as the gold moves along the supply chain. The profits will be used to buy more gold from the cooperatives, who in turn can invest in better equipment, mercury and cyanide free mechanical alternatives for refining the gold, and community projects of their choice. It offers a pathway out of poverty for potentially millions of people, including former militia child soldiers.
Read more about the first Fairtrade gold here
Why do artisanal gold miners in the DRC need PeaceGold?
PeaceGold matters because it brings justice to one of the most abusive practices in Africa. “The gold miners in the Democratic Republic of the Congo are being ripped off on a scale I have not seen in my 30 years,” says Valerio. The crux of the problem is that, beyond the inherent risks of artisanal mining in Africa, which Valerio describes as “like stepping into the circle of hell that Dante forgot to write about”, the DRC is listed as a conflict area, so despite NGOs working with miners, the gold has had few legal channels through which to leave the country. Legitimate state backed export routes such as DRC Gold Trading SA have only begun to reach the artisanal sector in the past three years. Smuggling was the other solution, leaving miners exposed to abusive agents who typically pay in cash only 20 percent of the value of the gold.
Who is Greg Valerio?
Valerio, the British activist and champion of ethical gold sourcing, has dedicated his life to finding ways to transform the “curse” of mineral wealth that has devastated the poorest nations into a force for good through well organised, small-scale gold mining. It is a crucial sector: artisanal and small-scale mining is, Valerio says, the second biggest employer on the planet after agriculture, supporting tens of millions of workers and their dependents. According to the World Gold Council, around 20 percent of the world’s newly mined gold comes from small-scale mining, yet most of these miners are excluded from official supply chains, leaving them ripe for abuse.
Valerio was the firebrand behind the first Fairtrade gold, which came from the Cotapata cooperative in Bolivia in 2011. He has spent his career exposing the injustices of the jewellery supply chain, from artisanal gold miners wading through mud in Central America and Africa to the conditions endured by garnet miners in Rajasthan, India, and ruby miners in Greenland.
How does PeaceGold use gold as a peace mineral?
This ambitious project uses gold as a peace mineral and a vehicle for healing rifts in a corner of Africa where, for generations, gold has funded the atrocities of war. PeaceGold works hand in hand with CRC, the respected Congolese body that runs rehabilitation programmes for former militia child soldiers. The participating cooperatives will integrate former soldiers into a mining system that has undergone an extensive programme of compliance, social impact assessment and a new process of selling gold.
At the same time, another significant breakthrough is a tripartite agreement that, over time, would bring in hundreds of cooperatives and legitimise a large share of the gold coming out of Ituri Province and beyond. If the PeaceGold structure can be replicated across Africa, it could transform one of the most unjust practices in the world and the lives of millions.
When will PeaceGold reach the market?
Valerio says he is “quietly confident” that PeaceGold will get some gold to market this year. “We are putting partnerships in place, meaning we will hit the ground running in 2027. I am pleased with the progress we have made,” he concludes.
PeaceGold key facts
- What: PeaceGold, a social enterprise partly owned by miners
- Founders: Greg Valerio MBE, the man behind the first Fairtrade gold (Bolivia, 2011), with Centre Résolution Conflits, 2013
- Where: 11 mining cooperatives in Ituri Province, eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo
- Partner: SigraFi, London; supply and financing agreement announced June 2026
- Workers reached: nearly 25,000 miners and auxiliary staff
- Miners’ share: miners receive a share in the profits as the gold moves along the supply chain
- Before PeaceGold: smuggling agents typically paid miners in cash only 20 percent of the gold’s value
- Rehabilitation partner: Centre Résolution Conflits (CRC), Beni, which rehabilitates former militia child soldiers
Frequently asked questions
Is PeaceGold the same as Fairtrade gold?
No. Fairtrade gold is a certification scheme. PeaceGold is a social enterprise in which miners hold a share and receive a share in the profits as the gold moves along the supply chain.
Where does PeaceGold gold come from?
From 11 artisanal mining cooperatives in Ituri Province, eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, aggregated and exported by PeaceGold.
Who buys PeaceGold gold?
SigraFi, a London based gold offtake company, under a long term supply and financing agreement signed in June 2026.
Is PeaceGold gold traceable?
Yes. It is exported under ICGLR certification and OECD due diligence requirements for gold from conflict affected regions, with every stage of the trade mapped from mine to export.
