Eleven African states approved a certification system for tracing the origin of minerals as part of a push to curb the exploitation of mines in the eastern DR Congo by rebel groups.
The process, approved by the region's mining ministers, provides for the identification of mines controlled exclusively by civilians, a joint statement said.
It also ensures the origin of the minerals is checked at every stage from extraction until they are shipped out for export.
"What the certification provides is a method for those exporters who want to stay within the legal channel to prove they are staying within the legal channel," said Shawn Blore, the architect of the scheme and a researcher with the NGO Partnership Africa Canada.
Eastern regions of the Democratic Republic of Congo have huge mineral wealth, particularly elements needed for consumer electronic devices.
But rebel groups and elements of the DR Congo army have been accused of illicitly exploiting the mines to fund their activities.
DR Congo President Joseph Kabila last month suspended mining in three eastern provinces because he said the mines were supporting "mafia groups" responsible for the chronic instability in the region.
The 11 countries party to the agreement are Angola, Burundi, Central African Republic, Congo, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Kenya, Rwanda, Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia.
The certification system will be presented to the region's heads of state at a summit scheduled to hold in Kinshasa in mid-November and should be implemented in a year's time.
The scheme also provides for the setting up of a database which would allow for checking any disparities between the quantities bought and sold by a given trader, as such disparities often indicate fraud.
There will also be a system of independent audits of the activities of the main players in the supply chain.
Blore told AFP the new initiative can contribute to stamping out the conflict minerals trade if consumers continue to pressure electronics companies to prove the origin of their minerals and push them to buy only certified ones.
The certification mechanism is part of a larger push to clean up the mining sector in eastern DR Congo.
The Paris-based Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development is putting the final touches to a guide explaining to players in the sector how they can avoid conflict minerals.
Blore said the OECD iniative was complementary to the certification mechanism.
The United States has also recently adopted legislation requiring companies that do business in DR Congo and the surrounding region to tell US regulators where they obtained a number of key minerals.
