African ministers, representatives from continental institutions, the private sector, and development partners have called for Africa’s critical minerals to drive a new era of economic transformation, industrialisation and job creation – especially for young people and women, through value addition, regional value chains and beneficiation.
They made the call at the Ministerial Forum on Critical Minerals, Value Chains, and Beneficiation, held in Abidjan on Friday, 10 July 2026.
In a statement released at the end of the Forum organised by the African Development Bank Group, participants emphasised that the continent must extract more value from its abundant mineral resources by developing regional value chains, local processing capacities, and competitive industries, rather than continuing to primarily export raw materials.
Africa holds about 30% of the world’s most critical mineral deposits, including cobalt, lithium, graphite, rare earths, platinum group metals, copper, manganese, and nickel. Yet, the continent continues to export raw and unprocessed minerals, capturing only a negligible share of the total economic value of its own resources.