South-South collaboration key to Africa’s mineral sovereignty- UNU-INRA report

The United Nations University’s Institute for Natural Resources in Africa (UNU-INRA) has called for a strategic shift in Africa’s position within the global critical minerals economy, urging stronger South-South collaboration to secure greater value from the energy transition.

In a new report “Africa Redefining Critical Minerals for a Shared Future: South-South Solidarity in Action”, the institute argues that the continent must move from being a peripheral supplier of raw materials to becoming a central actor in green industrialisation and mineral governance.

According to the report, Africa holds nearly one-third of the world’s critical mineral reserves, including cobalt, lithium, manganese and copper- minerals essential for renewable energy technologies, electric vehicles and digital infrastructure.

In production terms, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) accounts for roughly 74–75 percent of global cobalt output, while Gabon and South Africa together contribute more than 53 percent of global manganese production. Zambia’s copper exports rose 18 percent in 2024, underscoring the continent’s expanding output.

Despite this dominance in reserves and extraction, value retention remains limited. In 2023, only about 12 percent of Africa’s mineral exports were traded within the continent, reflecting weak regional beneficiation and integration.

Released on 12 February 2025, the report forms part of UNU-INRA’s Critical Minerals Information and Knowledge Hub (C-MINK), an initiative designed to position the continent at the centre of global mineral governance and ensure that its vast resources translate into inclusive and sustainable development.

UNU-INRA estimates that global revenues from copper, nickel, cobalt and lithium could reach US$16 trillion by 2050, with Sub-Saharan Africa potentially positioned to capture more than 10 percent of that value if governance and industrial strategies are strengthened.

Prof. Fatima Denton, Director of UNU-INRA and Head of the C-MINK initiative, said the continent’s mineral wealth must no longer represent “a paradox of abundance without prosperity.”

“Africa’s minerals are critical not only for the world’s decarbonisation agenda but for Africa’s own industrialisation, energy security and technological advancement,” she said.

The report also calls for a redefinition of mineral “criticality” to prioritise ownership, governance and value creation within producing countries. Additionally, it calls for embedding mineral resources into domestic production systems to drive manufacturing, technology development and structural transformation.

Furthermore, the report advocates deeper collaboration among Africa, Latin America and Asia to build green value chains and develop joint technological solutions. According to UNU-INRA, South-South solidarity could provide a strategic pivot for resource governance in an era of geopolitical fragmentation and contested energy transitions. The institute said that this shared knowledge, joint technological development and collective investment could form the basis of a new multilateral approach to mineral governance.

Through C-MINK, UNU-INRA aims to convene policymakers, researchers and investors to translate knowledge into strategic foresight for mineral governance.

Established in 1985 under a resolution of the Organisation of African Unity, UNU-INRA focuses on advancing science, infrastructure and innovation to support natural resource governance across the continent.

By strengthening governance frameworks and embedding justice within mineral policy, the report argues, the continent can transition from being a supplier of unprocessed commodities to a driver of innovation and industrial growth.

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