The Africa Minerals Strategy Group (AMSG) and the Council for Critical Minerals Development in the Global South are collaborating to establish local value chains for critical mineral resources and energy transition technologies across the continent.
Africa possesses 30% of the world’s proven critical mineral reserves, including 55% of cobalt, 47% of manganese, and 21% of natural graphite.
This partnership was officially announced at the SDG7 Action Forum in New York, where AMSG and the Council committed to delivering data and analytics while amplifying the voices and priorities of the Global South at regional and international events such as COP and G20.
AMSG is an intergovernmental body dedicated to harnessing the potential of Africa’s mineral reserves through cooperation among its member nations.
The founding members of AMSG include Botswana, Burundi, Chad, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Malawi, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Africa, South Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.
The Council was initiated by the UN organization Sustainable Energy for All (SEforALL), the Institute of Transportation Studies at the University of California, Davis, and the social enterprise Swaniti Global.
Moses Micheal Engadu, secretary-general of AMSG, emphasized that “there is no chance of making the energy transition without Africa.”
He noted that the continent’s “vast, largely unexplored and untapped reserves of significant mineral wealth are essential for the transition from natural gas to renewable energy materials.”
Engadu called for a reevaluation of the “current supply dynamics” to ensure that Africa maximizes its potential during this transition.
In addition to AMSG and the Council, the intergovernmental organization and economic bloc BRICS are also working to consolidate emerging critical materials markets in the Global South, including South Africa and Ethiopia. BRICS facilitates increased participation of its seven non-African members in the African Continental Free Trade Area.
As part of this strategy, African governments have increasingly restricted or banned mineral exports to boost domestic processing and retain profits from end products.
