Create African markets for its critical minerals, says WTO chief
G20 Heads of State and Government; invited Leaders and Heads of International Organizations have committed themselves to protecting Africa on its path to realise its development using its vast critical minerals.
Image: GCIS
AFRICAN leaders should establish markets to create value for the 30% of the world’s entire mineral reserves found on the continent to realise the objectives of G20 Critical Minerals Framework (CMF), says World Trade Organisation (WTO) head Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala.
"How we position ourselves as Africa depends on us and our policy-makers. If we continue to export 60% of our commodities and raw minerals, then things will not change," Okonjo-Iweala told journalists on the sidelines of the last day of the G20 Leaders' Summit yesterday.
In its 2025 summit declaration, on Saturday, the G20 leaders called for the establishment of the G20 CMF, aimed at leveraging critical minerals as a catalyst for sustainable development, inclusive economic growth, and resilience.
The framework seeks to ensure that mineral-producing countries, especially those from the Global South, derive maximum benefit from their raw minerals.
G20 leaders reflected on this framework yesterday, which culminated in an extensive report on the practical ways in which Africans can take advantage of to power their economies for an equitable economic transformation.
Okonjo-Iweala said that this time around, she is hopeful that Africa is poised for change, as more and more of its leaders are beginning to seek and demand change in how the continent's critical minerals are used in production, especially in artificial intelligence.
"African leaders are saying that this has to change. South Africa has called for a G20 critical minerals framework, which I think is a great initiative. This framework is saying, let us add value to these critical minerals. We have 30% of the world's minerals on this continent. We can go from raw mineral to finished products by creating sub-regional and regional value chains," she stated.
At the weekend, South Africa was commended by more than 19 global leaders for using its G20 presidency to usher in a new era of equality and sustainability for the continent and other low-income countries.
The leaders committed themselves to protecting global critical mineral supply chains from “disruption”, including from geopolitical tensions, unilateral trade actions that violate World Trade Organisation rules, pandemics, or natural disasters.
"We recognise that, as the world economy is undergoing significant changes, including sustainable transitions, rapid digitisation and industrial innovations, the demand for critical minerals will increase. We note that the benefits associated with critical minerals have not been fully realised and producer countries, especially in the developing world, are confronted with challenges of underinvestment, limited value addition and beneficiation, lack of technologies as well as socio-economic and environmental issues," the leaders said in their declaration.
International relations expert Dr Oscar van Heerden said Africa finds itself very low on the value chain with regard to critical minerals.
"That is quite a market share globally, and what they all talk about is to say, instead of sticking to the old agenda, where it is extractive and taken out of the continent, we need to turn that around and say how do we make it for ordinary Africans and make finished products.
"Critical minerals are now more needed than ever as people move into the digitised world, artificial intelligence and robotics," said Van Heerden, adding that it was important that the G20 member countries discuss this issue.
"It also extends to the beneficiation means, (Africa) also needs skills, AI, robotics and digitisation," he said.
Cape Times