Building Africa’s Future with Renewable Energy and Local Mineral Value

Africa is often referred to as the “dark continent” due to its energy shortages, but this narrative overlooks the continent’s vast wealth in critical minerals essential for the global energy transition. Established in 2009, the African Mining Vision (AMV) sought to ensure that Africa’s mineral wealth directly benefits its people by encouraging local value addition and industrialization. Although the Africa Mining Vision (AMV) aims for comprehensive adoption, progress has been slow, highlighting the challenges in its implementation. This article draws from discussions at a recent webinar on ‘Adding Local Value to African Countries’ Critical Raw Material Trade’, where experts from across Africa emphasized the need to leverage critical minerals for Africa’s green future.

External actors continue to extract raw materials without establishing the infrastructure necessary for local beneficiation and industrialization. This brings us to a crossroads: will Africa remain a mere supplier of raw materials, or will it lead the green revolution, not only for itself but for the world?

At the webinar, Dr. Wala Chabala, an economic policy expert and former CEO of the Zambia Chamber of Mines, cautioned against the unsustainable nature of Africa’s current resource extraction model. He noted that the Lobito Corridor project, which is pivotal in the extraction and transport of critical minerals, is funded through a $250 million loan from the United States as part of a $1.7 billion project. This raises serious concerns about the debt implications for African countries.

“While the world moves towards a greener future, Africa must not fall into another debt trap. We need partnerships that prioritize local value addition and sustainable development,” Dr. Chabala emphasized.

Africa’s critical minerals, including cobalt, lithium, and nickel, are essential for renewable technologies such as electric vehicle batteries and solar panels. However, if these resources are extracted without building local industries, African nations may be left with unsustainable debts. As Dr. Chabala highlighted during the webinar, exporting raw materials without beneficiation will leave African economies exposed to fluctuations in global markets and prevent them from developing sustainable industries.

A key point raised during the event was the misconception that job creation lies solely in the fossil fuel sector. In countries like Botswana, where coal and gas have been pillars of the economy, this belief persists. However, experts argue that fossil fuels are a dying industry due to global policy shifts and the increasing demand for cleaner energy.

Rajneesh Bhuee, Director of Policy and Advocacy at Oxfam South Africa, who gave insights into the African Mining Vision during the event, spoke passionately about the economic shift to renewables:

“Renewable energy offers not just jobs but sustainable, long-term employment. Fossil fuels may offer jobs today, but those industries are on the decline globally. We need to create jobs in sectors that will thrive for decades, not just a few years.”

Bhuee pointed to South Africa’s Renewable Energy Independent Power Producer Procurement Programme (REIPPPP), which has already created over 50,000 jobs, as a real-world example of how renewables can transform economies and job markets. This demonstrates that the renewable energy sector, unlike fossil fuels, is not only emerging but growing rapidly with potential for long-term employment.

In Botswana, the abundant sunlight offers a massive opportunity to invest in solar energy infrastructure, creating jobs in manufacturing, installation, and maintenance. The shift to renewables could turn the nation’s reliance on coal into a clean energy hub, generating local power while exporting energy and technology to neighboring countries.

As the demand for critical minerals skyrockets—lithium demand is projected to increase by 40x between 2020 and 2040—African countries are at a crossroads. Will they continue to export raw materials, or will they use this opportunity to build local industries? The webinar emphasized the need for Africa to become an industrial powerhouse, not just a supplier of raw materials.

Dr Tupala Musiku, a Zambian economist and former Director at the African Development Bank, urged a focus on local value addition: “Zambia produces copper, but only a fraction is processed locally. We need to build industries that add value to these materials right here in Africa. That’s how we grow our economies sustainably.”

The African Green Mineral Strategy, set to launch during the Africa Industrialization Week in December, is a key initiative to foster local beneficiation and sustainable development. It encourages African nations to collaborate regionally to build value chains that extract, refine, and manufacture products locally. This shift is crucial for Africa’s economic sovereignty.

For Africa to truly benefit from its wealth, it must transition from being a source of raw materials to a hub for renewable energy and technological innovation. The narrative of being the “dark continent” will only change when Africa’s natural and human resources are used to power the continent itself. This will require political goodwill, sustainable investment, and cooperation with global actors who genuinely respect Africa’s sovereignty and aspirations. Instead of relying on loans and exporting raw materials, African nations must build industries that process and refine these minerals locally, creating jobs, fostering innovation, and ensuring long-term economic growth.

The African Mining Vision and the Green Mineral Strategy provide a framework for this transformation, but they require the political will and international partnerships that put Africa’s interests first. As Dr. Wala concluded:

“Africa is not just a resource for the world. We must be the ones to benefit from our wealth, and that starts by keeping value within our borders.”

References:

• African Union (2009). The Africa Mining Vision. Available at: https://au.int/en/ti/amv/about.
• Narayan, R. (2024). Oxfam’s Mine-to-Market Program: Lessons for Africa. [Webinar].
• Chabala, W. (2024). Lobito Corridor: A Reality Check. Available at: https://doi.org/10.59184/sa.038.
• International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) (2022). Renewable Energy and Jobs Annual Review. Available at: https://www.irena.org.
• Sustain267 Podcast (2024). Profits, Costs and Development. Available at: https://open.spotify.com/episode/5cUwAd1S9XFH45UQmuRFwq
• Africa Center for Energy Policy (2023). Reviving the Sleepy Vision: Evaluation of the Implementation Status of the Africa Mining Vision. Available at https://acep.africa/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/AMVPaper.pdf