Minister of Solid Minerals Development and Chairman of African Minerals Strategy Group (AMSG), Dr. Dele Alake, yesterday, called for an end to what he described as the paradox of Africa’s minerals powering global industrialisation while the continent itself remains under-industrialised.
Alake disclosed this while speaking at the African Mining Week in Cape Town, South Africa, themed “Vision & Strategy – Setting the Stage for Minerals Industrialisation,” where he made a compelling case for a new vision that would transform Africa from a mere raw minerals’ supplier into a global hub for mineral processing, innovation, and green industrialisation.
He said: “Africa’s minerals have powered industrialisation elsewhere while our own economies remain under-industrialised. This paradox must end. Our vision must be clear to move from extractive dependence to transformative industrialisation.”
Alake underscored the continent’s strategic role in powering the 21st-century economy through its vast mineral wealth.
Represented by the Permanent Secretary of the ministry, Farouk Yabo, the minister stated that the nation is incentivising local beneficiation from gold refining to Lithium processing, revoking dormant licences to promote serious investment, strengthening governance and transparency to attract credible global partners, and building a national critical minerals strategy.
He noted that Africa is home to some of the richest mineral deposits in the world, stressing that these resources are critical to clean energy, digital technologies, advanced manufacturing, and global security.
Alake stated: “Our youth should no longer seek jobs abroad while opportunities lie buried beneath their feet. The time to industrialise is now. Let us set the stage for an Africa that is not just a participant in the global minerals economy, but a driver of its future.”
On the sidelines of the conference, the Nigerian also addressed the ministerial roundtable of the African Minerals Strategy Group (AMSG), where he outlined Nigeria’s efforts to build a $1 trillion economy by 2030 through resource-based industrialisation.
