Nigeria and the African Development Bank have issued a unified call for African nations to assert greater control over their mineral wealth through value addition, regional integration, data sovereignty, and strategic financing.
The appeal came during the Ministerial Forum on Critical Minerals, Value Chain and Beneficiation, convened under AfDB auspices in Abidjan.
Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dele Alake, urged mineral-producing countries to embrace regional cooperation as a pathway to unlocking greater benefits from the continent’s vast resources.
“While the mantra of value addition has ushered in an era of economic independence for mineral-producing nations, we need concrete, actionable strategies to take charge of our natural assets,” Alake stated.
The Minister, who also chairs the Africa Mineral Strategy Group (AMSG), revealed that more than 30 member countries are advancing a unified continental approach anchored on value addition.
He called for African sovereignty over data and technical systems used to assess and report the continent’s mineral resources, describing reliance on Australia’s Joint Ore Reserves Committee (JORC) standard as outdated. Alake advocated instead for the adoption of the Pan African Resource Reporting Code (PARC), developed by the Africa Minerals Development Centre, which he said promotes transparency and reflects Africa’s unique geological and environmental characteristics.
Proposing a West African minerals-processing corridor stretching from Lagos to Dakar, Alake argued that participating countries could leverage comparative advantages, share infrastructure, and distribute both risks and rewards. He noted that intra-African trade currently stands at approximately 16 per cent, compared with 60 per cent in Asia and 70 per cent in Europe.
AfDB President Dr Sidi Ould Tah observed that Africa’s vast critical-mineral deposits have yet to translate into commensurate GDP growth or global influence, citing inadequate financing and low foreign direct investment as key obstacles.
The forum concluded with the adoption of the Abidjan Declaration, which places financing at the heart of efforts to transform Africa’s mining sector. Under the declaration, the AfDB pledged financial instruments, capital mobilisation, and technical expertise to de-risk strategic projects.
The gathering attracted over 20 ministers, representatives from AfDB and Afreximbank, the U.S. Export-Import Bank, and mining companies from Germany, Canada, and the United States. Participants reaffirmed that stronger African cooperation and regional value addition are essential for sustainable economic transformation.
