Africa is encountering a myriad of challenges in its mineral sector, with a lack of systematic geological mapping being a major impediment to the continent’s ability to explore its abundant mineral reserves, according to United Nations experts.
A team of specialists from the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) reported on Saturday that Africa holds at least a fifth of the world’s metal reserves crucial for the energy transition, including those required for the manufacturing of electric vehicles.
“Africa boasts some of the largest reserves of world minerals but lacks a systematic geological mapping, which could unveil a much larger resource base and reserves,” said Clovis Freire, UNCTAD’s Chief of the Commodity Research and Analysis Section, in an interview with The Southern African Times.
Freire highlighted Africa’s potential as a promising landscape for investment in the extraction and processing of critical energy transition minerals. Notably, the Democratic Republic of the Congo holds about 48 percent of global cobalt reserves, while South Africa possesses approximately 90 percent of platinum group reserves.
“There is a need for detailed geological surveys and advanced exploration techniques to identify unknown or underexplored mineral deposits, which could offer significant opportunities for new mining ventures and investment across the continent,” Freire stated.
UNCTAD data indicates that the demand for critical energy transition minerals such as lithium, cobalt, and copper could increase almost fourfold by 2030.
As the climate emergency intensifies, the demand for these minerals is set to surge, given their necessity for renewable energy technologies like solar panels, wind turbines, and electric vehicles.
Rachid Amui, another UNCTAD expert, noted that African countries predominantly rely on a traditional model where raw mineral resources are exported with minimal or no value addition, resulting in a limited share of the commodity value chain benefits.
“The traditional mining and trading practices have generated small revenues, minimal employment opportunities, and little tax revenues and export earnings for mineral-exporting countries in Africa,” Amui remarked.
Amui also pointed out that inadequate infrastructure, such as poor transportation networks, often hinders the efficient movement of minerals from extraction sites to export points.
“Many mining sites in Africa are located in areas with unreliable and insufficient energy infrastructure, which can disrupt mining operations and increase costs,” Amui explained. He further noted that the shortage of finance, skilled labour, and technical expertise has stymied mining operations across the continent.
According to Amui, limited access to advanced mining technology poses another significant challenge, frequently leading to reduced productivity and increased environmental impacts, thereby complicating the process of harnessing and exporting Africa’s mineral resources.
In light of these challenges, experts advocate for substantial investment in geological mapping, infrastructure development, and the adoption of advanced mining technologies to unlock Africa’s full mineral potential and ensure the continent benefits more significantly from its vast natural resources.
