African Governments establish the Africa Minerals Strategy Group (AMSG)

Future economic growth and prosperity requires a robust supply of critical minerals. The Security of critical minerals supply chains is strategic for many countries due to the expected growth in demand driven by the uptake of clean energy technologies around the world. Africa possesses significant reserves of the critical minerals and rare earth elements which makes Africa more critical in the race to secure the supplies needed to achieve decarbonisation and to meet the ever increasing global demand for critical minerals. Therefore, without Africa there won’t be energy transition. Africa which is generously endowed with vast critical minerals must play a key role the critical minerals agenda and in shaping the global energy transition. 

Without Africa there won’t be energy transition. Africa which is generously endowed with vast critical minerals must play a key role the critical minerals agenda and in shaping the global energy transition.

Africa Minerals Strategy Group

In June 2022, the Minerals Security Partnership (MSP) was officially announced in Toronto, Canada to improve cooperation and bolster critical mineral supply chains. The United States led Minerals Security Partnership includes Australia, Canada, Finland, France, Germany, Korea, Sweden, United Kingdom and the European Commission, which does not include any African country kicked off a scramble for African critical minerals between the West and China which presents both a challenge and opportunity for African countries to become major players in the global critical minerals value chain.

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia on its part, convened the Future Minerals Forum in an effort to build a Super Region encompassing Africa, Western and Central Asia aimed at creating resilient and responsible value chains, secure energy transition and foster industrial development. Saudi Arabia is leading the development of a global critical minerals strategy. Though this effort is noble, African countries too haven’t been meaningfully involved and are more of ‘consumers’ rather than ‘contributors’ in the global critical minerals strategy.

Africa must urgently build a minerals cooperation mechanism to benefit from its vast endowments of critical minerals and in order to be at the fore front, have a stronger voice and influence on the energy transition. It is in this regard that on 9th January 2024 on the sidelines of the Ministerial Roundtable of the third Future Minerals Forum held in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, the Ministers of Minerals and Mines from 16 African countries met and established the Africa Minerals Strategy Group (AMSG).

Ministers and Representatives of African Governments who attended the AMSG Establishment Meeting in Riyadh. 

Purpose

The primary purpose of the Africa Minerals Strategy Group is to facilitate international cooperation in the minerals and mining sector among Member African Nations.

Goal

The goal of the Africa Minerals Strategy Group is to promote exploration, extraction, production, local beneficiation (value addition) and commercialization to ensure a sustainable, transparent and secure supply of critical minerals, while protecting the environment and improving the quality of life of our population, to spur the socio-economic transformation and prosperity of Africa, and support the energy transition.

 

During the AMSG Establishment Meeting on 9th January 2024 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

 

The Africa Minerals Strategy Group (AMSG) will actively engage with interested nations and strategic partners like the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to explore investment opportunities and contribute to the future economic development in the mining sector in member African nations.

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