What Happened
- The Africa Finance Corporation (AFC) released a report highlighting Africa's mineral wealth of approximately $29.5 trillion in mine-site value, of which $8.6 trillion remains undeveloped.
- The report identifies rising global trade tensions and supply chain disruptions as factors elevating the strategic value of African minerals, particularly rare earths, cobalt, manganese, and graphite.
- It urges African nations to shift from raw mineral exports to domestic processing and value addition, noting that Africa captures minimal downstream value from its resource endowment.
- China's dominance in mineral processing — controlling approximately 90% of global manganese refining and rare earth processing — is identified as a concentration risk for global supply chains.
- Gold is highlighted as a key strategic asset for African nations seeking to build foreign exchange reserves and economic stability.
Static Topic Bridges
Critical Minerals and Global Supply Chain Geopolitics
Critical minerals — minerals essential for clean energy technologies, defence systems, and advanced electronics — have become a central arena of geopolitical competition. The concentration of mining in Africa and processing in China creates a strategic vulnerability for industrialised nations and emerging economies like India.
- Africa holds approximately 30% of the world's critical mineral reserves: 85% of global manganese reserves, 47% of cobalt reserves, 21% of graphite reserves, and rising lithium deposits.
- The Democratic Republic of Congo accounts for approximately 70% of global cobalt mining; South Africa is the world's largest manganese producer; Zimbabwe ranks among the top five globally in lithium deposits.
- China controls 90% of rare earth processing and 90% of manganese refining — creating a single-point-of-failure risk for global manufacturing.
- The Minerals Security Partnership (MSP), launched in 2022 by the US with 14 partners including India, Japan, South Korea, and the EU, aims to diversify critical mineral supply chains away from Chinese dominance.
- India launched the National Critical Minerals Mission (NCMM) in 2025, a seven-year framework to secure upstream access and co-develop value chains, particularly in Africa and Latin America.
Connection to this news: The AFC report's emphasis on processing African minerals domestically aligns with global efforts to reduce dependence on Chinese refining, but also creates competition between consuming nations (US, India, EU, Japan) for partnerships with African mineral-rich states.
India's Critical Mineral Strategy and Africa Engagement
As India pursues its green energy transition and advanced manufacturing goals, access to lithium, cobalt, nickel, and rare earth elements has become a strategic imperative. India's approach combines domestic exploration with international partnerships, particularly targeting the Global South.
- India's critical minerals list (2023, updated by the Ministry of Mines) identifies 30 minerals deemed critical for economic development and national security, including lithium, cobalt, nickel, rare earths, graphite, vanadium, and tungsten.
- KABIL (Khanij Bidesh India Limited), a joint venture of NALCO, HCL, and MECL, was established in 2019 to acquire strategic mineral assets overseas — it has signed agreements with Argentina (lithium) and Australia (lithium, cobalt).
- India-Africa trade reached approximately $100 billion in 2023-24; Africa accounted for about 9% of India's total imports.
- India's National Critical Minerals Mission (2025) aims to secure supply chain resilience through bilateral resource partnerships, stockpiling, and domestic exploration (including deep-sea mining in the Indian Ocean).
- India holds "Pioneer Investor" status for deep-sea mining in the Central Indian Ocean Basin through the International Seabed Authority — covering polymetallic nodules containing manganese, nickel, cobalt, and copper.
Connection to this news: The report's findings underscore the urgency for India to deepen engagement with African nations for mineral security, particularly as the US-China trade war and EU critical minerals legislation reshape global supply chains.
Value Addition in Mining — The Resource Curse and Beneficiation Debate
The concept of the "resource curse" (or "paradox of plenty") describes how countries rich in natural resources often experience slower economic growth, greater inequality, and weaker governance than resource-poor countries. The AFC report's call for domestic processing directly addresses this challenge.
- Iron ore worth $2.8 trillion at mine-site value could yield $25.4 trillion in processed steel — a nine-fold value multiplication.
- Bauxite worth $874 billion could expand to $15.4 trillion as refined aluminium — an eighteen-fold multiplication.
- Angola is planning Africa's first rare earth refinery; Mozambique has entered the graphite/anode supply chain; South Africa and Botswana are advancing battery-grade manganese projects.
- The African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), operational since January 2021, aims to create a single market of 1.4 billion people and $3.4 trillion GDP — providing a framework for regional mineral value chains.
- India's own experience with iron ore export policy — banning iron ore exports above certain thresholds to promote domestic steel production — offers a parallel to the beneficiation debate in Africa.
Connection to this news: The AFC report advocates a structural shift from raw material export to processing, which, if achieved, would fundamentally alter global mineral markets and the bargaining power of African producer nations.
Key Facts & Data
- Africa's mine-site mineral wealth: approximately $29.5 trillion
- Undeveloped mineral wealth: $8.6 trillion (2.5 times Africa's annual GDP)
- Africa's share of global reserves: 85% manganese, 47% cobalt, 21% graphite, 30% overall critical minerals
- DRC: 70% of global cobalt mining
- China: 90% of global manganese refining and rare earth processing
- India's critical minerals list: 30 minerals (2023, Ministry of Mines)
- AfCFTA: 54 member states, 1.4 billion people, $3.4 trillion GDP
- Global lithium demand projected to grow eightfold by 2040
- Copper demand projected to rise 50% by 2040