Critical Minerals in Africa: Dismantling Neoliberal Extractivism for Sustainable Development

There is a new rush in Africa, creating a massive, urgent demand for critical minerals. These are minerals required in vast quantities to enable the global transition away from fossil fuels in favor of renewable energy systems. The rush has significant implications for sub-Saharan Africa, which is home to approximately 30 percent of the world’s known supply of critical minerals.

Currently, the model governing critical mineral extraction in Africa is deeply neoliberal and fundamentally unjust. This model prioritizes global corporate interests over local well-being. This flawed model has damaging consequences: significant revenue is lost due to tax breaks and subsidies granted to multinational corporations. It fuels severe social crises, leading to human rights violations, including child labor, poor working conditions, slave wages, and land dispossession of local communities. This export-only focus also leads to massive environmental degradation and the creation of economies dangerously dependent on raw resource exports and volatile global commodity prices.

This webinar, hosted by Greenpeace Africa, will explore practical ways to dismantle this neoliberal form of extractivism and redefine the future of African resource wealth. It will explore solutions and strategies, including centring communities, redirecting fossil fuel subsidies to invest in local renewable energy infrastructure, developing value chains, and advancing financial sovereignty. 

Speakers

• Nafi Quarshie, Africa Director, NRGI
• Karabo Chadzingwa, Research Lead, African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM)
• Novita Indri, Research Campaigner, Trend Asia
• Adrain Joseph, Research Fellow, South African Institute of International Affairs (SAIIA)
• Kudakwashe Majonjo, Just Transition Advisor, Power Shift Africa
• Claudious Chikhozo, Senior Research Advisor, Greenpeace Africa