According to the United Nations, Africa is home to about 30 per cent of the world’s mineral reserves, 12% of the world’s oil and 8 per cent of the world’s natural gas reserves. The largest reserves of minerals including cobalt, diamonds, platinum, Lithium and uranium in the world are in Africa. The continent still holds 65 per cent of the world’s arable land and ten per cent of the planet’s internal renewable freshwater source. The statistics are countless. But despite Africa’s immense mineral wealth, the continent is yet to reap the financial benefits due to a lack of policies to promote value addition. Africa is said to be losing over $60 billion a year in illegal outflows and price manipulation in the extraction of minerals, with most of the proceeds going offshore. However, in recent times, African nations have started addressing the issue of exploitation, seizing every opportunity to stop it. Last Thursday, the Namibian government imposed a ban on the export of unprocessed lithium and other critical minerals. The move is aimed to capitalize on the increasing global demand for metals utilized in clean energy technologies, ensuring potential economic benefits for Namibia.
African States are Looking for Fairer Deals on their Natural Resources
- AFRICA TOP 10
- 1 min read