A new vision is needed for Africa to harness its significant advantage in green mineral resources, experts say, and collaboration with Asian nations and learning from their successful experience in developing green mineral value chains is a crucial next step.
Many African countries possess significant reserves of green minerals, including aluminium, chromium, copper, cobalt, lithium, graphite and rare earth elements that play a vital role in the development of renewable energy technologies, including solar panels, wind turbines, green hydrogen production, electric vehicles and battery storage.
To explore the potential synergies between Africa and Asia, the Asia External Representation Office and the African Natural Resources Management and Investment Centre of the African Development Bank last month organized an online policy dialogue event titled "Enhancing cooperation between Africa and Asia in developing Green Minerals value chains".
The event brought together a wide range of experts in the green minerals sector, including representatives to explore cooperation opportunities and lessons Africa could learn from Asia's experiences.
Dr. Vanessa Ushie, Acting Director of the African Natural Resources Management and Investment Centre, highlighted the importance of Africa's transition from a raw material exporter to a key player in the entire green minerals value chain for the continent's inclusive and sustainable growth. As part of this transition, "Africa and Asia can cooperate in win-win partnerships," she said.
With abundant reserves of green minerals and the continent with the lowest carbon emissions per capita, Dr. Paul Jourdan, an extractives consultant, noted that Africa is a positive contributor to the global energy transition. He highlighted Africa's advantages in the green transition, including "mineral reserves and various renewable energy sources such as solar, hydro and wind."
He also emphasized the significant potential market, "as access to electricity in Africa is still low" and noted how the development of the green mineral value chain would present an opportunity to energize and industrialize the continent.
Taking the example of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Dr. Marit Kitaw, Interim Director of the African Minerals Development Centre, at the African Union Commission in Addis Ababa, illustrated the cost advantages of localizing production in Africa. She also discussed how Africa and Asia could mutually benefit through cooperation especially in the areas of skills and technology transfer.
Sulemanu Koney, CEO, Ghana Chamber of Mines, and Executive Director of ECOWAS Federation of Chambers of Mines, emphasized the importance of "transferring the policy into actionable objectives". Given the high-risk nature of the mining industry, he stressed the importance of attracting investment - particularly through Africa's local capital markets - for mineral exploration.
Drawing from China's experience transitioning from a minerals exporter to a major manufacturer, Professor Zha Daojiong, from the Department of International Political Economy, School of International Studies, the Institute of South-South Cooperation and Development at Peking University, said joint ventures could help to sustain international minerals-related business linkages.
Another example Africa could follow is that of Latin America, a region that attracted foreign capital into its mining sector and cooperated with foreign partners. Hiroki Katayama, Director of Division 1 in the Mining and Metal Finance Department at the Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC), highlighted three elements that foreign investors care about the most: "stable government and predictable mining policy; a transparent and sustainable mineral supply chain; and reliable logistics infrastructure."
Jerry Ahadjie, Chief Minerals Officer at African Natural Resources Investment and Management Centre of the African Development Bank, emphasized the successful experiences of Asia that Africa could learn from, including the need for homegrown solutions to adapt technologies, effective incentives regime and industrial policies.
Naoshige Kinoshita, OIC of the Asia External Representation Office (PEXT) and the former Chief Investment Officer for Energy Financial Solutions at the African Development Bank, highlighted the success of the Mozal Aluminum Project in Mozambique, financed by JBIC, as a prime example. In addition, profit-sharing mechanisms involving equity participation in projects by African entities would be important, he said.
