Bettercoal Assessment Program Update

Independent third-party site-assessment based on risk-prioritization criteria. As an important part of the Assessment Program, the site-assessment provides Bettercoal Members independent data on their suppliers’ performance against the Bettercoal Code. For suppliers it is an opportunity to benchmark their performance against a comprehensive set of international standards, work towards best practice and manage risks. The Bettercoal Assessment Program is one of continuous improvement, and Bettercoal and the Members work closely with the mining companies to improve their practices against the Bettercoal Code over time, which will include re-assessments.

Bettercoal’s Executive Director, Martin Christie states “It’s now that we can start to measure Bettercoal’s potential impact on the ground”.

The assessment report will identify where the companies are performing well, and where they should focus their efforts and resources to conform to the Bettercoal Code Provisions. Once the assessment report is completed, the companies will work on a time-bound Corrective Action Plan and a re-assessment will take place based on the scores found during the initial site-assessment.

These first completed site-assessments offer important learning opportunities for Bettercoal and its Members to see how the Code works out in practice. Building on the existing Bettercoal Assessment Procedures, the Secretariat will work with the newly formed Technical & Advisory Committee in 2016 to formalise areas of the Assessment Program and strengthen its assurance framework, providing clarity and credibility to participants and stakeholders on the design and process of the Assessment Program. Bettercoal will also look into any capacity building and training opportunities on responsible coal mining in 2016.