Africa is pushing for greater control of its critical minerals as leaders and policymakers prepare for a high-level summit in New York focused on value addition, investment and continental cooperation.
The Africa Minerals Strategy Group, AMSG, will convene its Third High-Level Roundtable on Critical Minerals Development in Africa on the sidelines of the 81st United Nations General Assembly, with a statement by the AMSG desk issued to newsmen in Abuja on Sunday saying the roundtable will hold on Sept. 21 and will be chaired by President Bola Tinubu, who is the Chairperson of the AMSG General Assembly.
The initiative underscores Africa’s growing determination to place critical minerals at the centre of its industrial, economic and geopolitical agenda.
The News Agency of Nigeria reports that AMSG comprises more than 30 African countries represented by ministers responsible for minerals and mining.
The group is chaired by Nigeria’s Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dele Alake, and seeks to promote common policies, local value addition and responsible mineral development across the continent.
The roundtable will focus on the theme, “From Resources to Wealth: Continental Cooperation for Mineral Value Addition.”
The meeting comes as competition for critical minerals intensifies globally, with resources such as lithium, copper, cobalt, graphite, manganese and rare earth elements becoming increasingly important to modern technologies, energy systems, defense industries and manufacturing supply chains.
AMSG said Africa possesses significant reserves of many of these strategic minerals, but much of the continent’s mineral wealth has historically been exported with limited processing and value addition.
The group said it wants to change the traditional model by encouraging African countries to develop integrated mineral value chains within the continent.
“The New York Roundtable will therefore focus on how African countries can move beyond the traditional extract-and-export model to build integrated mineral value chains,” the statement said.
It added that the gathering would also seek to attract transformative capital, strengthen continental cooperation and enable Africa to secure a greater share of the economic value generated from its mineral resources.
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According to AMSG, the roundtable represents a major step towards implementing the Mutual Assured Development, MADE, Framework unveiled at the African Natural Resources and Energy Investment Summit, AFNIS, 2026 in Abuja.
The New York meeting is expected to move the initiative from strategic dialogue towards practical implementation through the unveiling of the Continental Integration and Economic Assurance Declaration, CIEAD.
AMSG said the declaration would establish a new framework for cooperation among African countries on critical minerals.
The framework is expected to cover policy coordination, investment mobilization and mineral value addition, while also addressing supply-chain security and strengthening Africa’s negotiating position in the global minerals market.
AMSG said the global shift towards electric vehicles, renewable energy, advanced manufacturing, artificial intelligence, digital infrastructure and modern defense systems had increased competition for reliable supplies of critical minerals.
The development has placed the continent at the centre of an evolving global economic and geopolitical landscape because of the continent’s substantial mineral resources.
AMSG said Africa now had an opportunity to use its mineral wealth to drive manufacturing, technology transfer, infrastructure development, regional trade and job creation.
It stressed that the continent should avoid remaining primarily a source of raw materials for industries in other parts of the world.
The roundtable is expected to examine practical strategies for African countries to establish competitive and integrated mineral value chains.
It will also explore ways to strengthen cooperation among African countries and attract long-term investments into mineral processing, refining, manufacturing and supporting infrastructure.
AMSG said discussions would focus on bankable investment opportunities, policy alignment, investment structures and mechanisms capable of transforming Africa’s mineral wealth into measurable economic value.
The group said the initiative was aimed at ensuring that the continent plays a more influential role in determining how its critical mineral resources are developed, processed and integrated into global supply chains.
NAN
