大象传媒

Will Donald Trump's desired repeal of the Dodd Frank Act mark a comeback for conflict minerals in the DRC? He's issued an executive order asking Congress to consider revisions of the Act. One key clause, 1502, requires US firms to declare where they're sourcing their gold, tin, and other minerals, often used in consumer electronics. In the past, it was argued, the trade in these was fueling wars in the Democratic Republic of Congo, wars that in the last two decades have claimed millions of lives. So has Dodd Frank reduced the killing, or has it simply added to the cost burdens of companies, and impoverished all DRC miners? We hear from Harrison Mitchell, Head of Due Diligence at RCS Global, which advises firms on their supply chains, and from Carly Oboth, a policy adviser at the campaign group, Global Witness, which believes repeal of the act could be disastrous for the region. Also in the programme, on St Valentine's Day, we ask is the US President Trump good for our love-lives? Grant Langston, chief executive of the US online dating website, eHarmony, says the evidence suggests, he might be. And we also have a report from Loveland Colorado, a town that has built an entire economy around Valentines, and general terms of endearment.
(Photo credit: Miners in the Democratic Republic of Congo. LIONEL HEALING/AFP/Getty Images)