Relegating Africa to the world’s green mine is costing us

This piece was published on Climate Home News on September 5, 2024.

There is a fierce scramble underway for the minerals to enable a low-carbon future and it is costing Africa $24 billion a year and risking a global energy transition. Africa has long been the world’s supplier of raw materials, from gold and diamonds to oil and gas. Now, with over 40% of the global reserves of transition minerals, we face the prospect of continuing this role into the green economy. 

The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) alone holds 60% of the world’s cobalt, a critical component for lithium-ion batteries. However, if the current trends continue, Africa will once again find itself exporting raw materials while others—predominantly in China, Europe, and the United States— reap the financial rewards and the benefits of the technologies produced by them. Currently Africa is left to bear the brunt of the climate crisis while others profit from our resources.

Economic modelling from Publish What You Pay released this week shows a stark opportunity lost. Africa could boost its GDP by at least $24 billion annually and create 2.3 million jobs by introducing robust manufacturing and trade policies for transition minerals supply chains. The biggest job opportunities lie in manufacturing things like solar panels and batteries which would only be possible with technology transfer and skilling up a new green workforce on the continent.

And this is only part of the picture. As well as transforming minerals into products that can be exported at better prices – bolstering economies and, hopefully, driving development – African countries could use them to build their own cleaner, affordable energy systems. This is a continent where 600 million still don’t have access to electricity.

Shutting out Africa 

But the world’s wealthiest nations are determined to maintain control over critical mineral supply chains, prioritising their own economic interests. The EU has set its sights on processing 40% of the critical minerals it consumes within its borders by 2030, while the UK is adopting a similar approach. 

The US, through its Inflation Reduction Act, is offering tax incentives to electric vehicle manufacturers that source, process, or recycle minerals within the US or its free trade agreement (FTA) partners. The US has 20 trade agreements in effect and only one is with an African country: Morocco. 

These moves to “secure” supplies of minerals block sensible policies for Africa to capture more of the economic value in global transition mineral value chains.

Jointly pursuing a climate and development agenda

In response, some leaders are taking steps to ensure they see benefits. Last week,  Zambia’s mining minister announced a state investment firm that will hold at least a 30% share of all future critical mineral production. 

However, isolated national efforts like Zambia’s recent move, are not enough. This challenge goes beyond individual economies. What’s at stake is Africa’s ability to shape its future and take a central role in the global energy transition—not as a mere supplier of raw materials, but as a hub of innovation, manufacturing, and sustainable development. To achieve this, African nations must work together, leveraging their collective power.

We need a coordinated industrial strategy across the continent, where African nations work together to develop their mineral processing and manufacturing capabilities. Some of the solutions are within our grasp; finalising and fully implementing the African Continental Free Trade Area, if done right, could be a game-changer by allowing African countries to trade with each other more easily and develop regional industries that can compete globally.

The African Union is currently developing a green minerals strategy which could chart a course to deeper regional economic integration. The Africa Minerals Development Centre, set up by the Africa Union in 2016, could super-charge this progress if it were to receive the necessary 15 ratifications from member states to be a fully-fledged institution; it currently has just four. 

Above all, we need commitment from our leaders that Africa’s mineral wealth will benefit its own people. The mining industry is among the most harmful to people and planet, and the most brutal in its repression of critics. We need transparent governance of the mining sector, robust laws to protect communities and the environment, along with a commitment to building local industries that create jobs and drive sustainable development. 

Next week, we might see the discussion around equity, trade and development in the minerals scramble take on the UN stage if the principles from the panel on critical energy transition minerals live up to their mandate of ensuring “the race to net zero cannot trample over the poor.” But change is happening too slowly.

Africa must not be relegated to the role of the world’s green mine. We have the resources, the talent and the need to develop industries that support our sustainable development. In turn, we will accelerate the global energy transition. It’s time for Africa to take its rightful place—not as a mere supplier of raw materials, but as a leader in the new, green economy.