Africa Must End Raw Mineral Exports To Boost Industrialisation –Alake

African leaders have been urged to accelerate the local processing of the continent’s vast mineral resources in a bid to create jobs, boost industrialisation and retain more economic value within Africa.

Speaking at the African Development Bank(AfDB) Ministerial Forum in Abidjan, the Chair of the Africa Mineral Strategy Group who is also Nigeria’s Minister of Solid Minerals, Dele Alake called on African governments to break the long standing pattern of exporting raw minerals while importing finished products at significantly higher costs.

The minister stressed that Africa possesses abundant critical mineral resources that are essential to global industries, but continues to receive only a fraction of their full economic value because most processing and manufacturing take place outside the continent.

A key proposal presented at the forum was for African countries to take ownership of the standards and data used to evaluate their mineral resources through the Pan African Resource Reporting Code (PARC). According to the minister, establishing African led reporting standards would enable the continent to determine the true value of its mineral wealth on its ownterms and strengthen investor confidence.

The forum also marked the adoption of the Abidjan Declaration, a framework aimed at deepening regional cooperation on mineral development.

The declaration commits African nations to improving financing mechanisms, encouraging practical investments and developing cross-border mineral processing hubs that will support local beneficiation, expand intra-African trade and stimulate industrial growth.

Reaffirming the Africa Mineral Strategy Group’s commitment, the Alake said the organization would continue working with governments and development partners to ensure the continent’s mineral wealth generates employment, strengthens economies and delivers long term prosperity for African citizens.

Africa is home to some of the world’s largest reserves of critical minerals, including cobalt, lithium, manganese, bauxite, platinum and rare earth elements, which are increasingly essential for renewable energy technologies, electric vehicles and advanced manufacturing.

Despite this resource wealth, he said many African countries primarily export raw minerals with limited local processing.

As a result, Alake noted that much of the value is added overseas through refining, manufacturing and technology production before finished products are sold back to African markets at higher prices.

In recent years, African governments have intensified calls for greater value addition, industrialisation and regional cooperation underinitiatives such as the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).

The African Development Bank and other continental institutions have also advocated investments in mineral processing,infrastructure and regional value chains to ensure Africa captures a larger share of the benefits from its natural resources.

The adoption of the Abidjan Declaration is viewed as part of these broader efforts to transform Africa from a supplier of raw materials into a competitive producer of value added mineral products.