Indonesia is the world's second-largest producer of tin and its largest exporter. Tin mining activities in Indonesia are concentrated in the Bangka Belitung Islands province with some production in nearby areas. Exports of tin from the region predated European colonization, with the Dutch East India Company commencing commercial exploitation of the resource in the 18th century. Large mining concerns controlled tin production throughout the 19th and much of the 20th century under both the Dutch and Indonesian governments.
Following the restructuring of the state-owned mining company PT Timah and the fall of President Suharto in the 1990s, small-scale artisanal tin mining had become the dominant producer in the country. The wide extent of mining activities on Bangka and Belitung has had significant environmental impact, with a large number of unreclaimed mining pits or kolong covering the islands' landscape. Smuggling and child labor have become issues in the industry. Poor safety measures have also resulted in hundreds of miners being killed in accidents.