Sign onto Africa Responsible Mineral Sourcing Initiative - Mineral-rich African countries urged

African countries with mineral resources have been urged to sign onto the Africa Responsible Mineral Sourcing Initiative to promote responsible and sustainable mining practices on the continent.

In spite of the wide spread of mineral resources across Africa, only 16 countries have signed onto the initiative.

They include Uganda, Nigeria, Chad and South Sudan. Conspicuously missing is Ghana, currently Africa's largest gold exporter.

The Secretary-General of the Africa Mineral Strategy Group, Moses Engadu, said the initiative was intended to protect mining communities and also ensure that the environment and life were not compromised through mining activities.

In a presentation at the Africa Mining workshop in Dubai, UAE, yesterday, Mr Engadu said a new set of guidelines for minerals sourcing on the continent would be rolled out in May 2025, to sanitise the mining environment in Africa.

He said the implementation of the guidelines would deal with some of the challenges that had emerged as a counter to investment in the sector.

Mr Engadu said the mission of the initiative was also to ensure robust standards, advocate ethical practices and support sustainable development of Africa's mineral sourcing to create a positive legacy for the people and the environment of Africa.

Event

The two-day conference, dubbed "Africa mining workshop on building a responsible mineral sourcing ecosystem for precious metals supply chains in Africa," is being attended by ministers of state, top government officials, financial intelligence authorities, central banks, mining companies, insurers, logistics providers, assurers, aggregators, traders, investors, development partners, civil society and precious metals industry leaders.

Among issues being discussed are ways to strengthen responsible mineral sourcing on the continent. The event is happening on the platform of the Dubai Precious Metals Conference 2024, which opened in Dubai yesterday.

It also aims to support African countries to comply with responsible sourcing guidelines and anti-money laundering, including combating terrorism financing regulations to achieve transparency, traceability, accountability and sustainability in Africa’s minerals and mining sector through collaboration and collective engagement.

This, the organisers said, would be achieved through capacity-building, resource sharing, technology advancement and strategic partnerships.

The conference will make recommendations and propose a road map for responsible mineral sourcing on the continent.

The Africa Minerals Strategy Group, in partnership with Oheneba Poku Foundation, a Ghanaian non-governmental organisation, and the Dubai Multi Commodities Centre (DMCC), is implementing the initiative to build an ecosystem for responsible mineral sourcing.

Context

Africa has a rich base of mineral resources, including gold, silver and diamond.

Precious metals and minerals are considered other forms of currency essential for economic growth and development.

The minerals and the supply chains that connect them to world markets are said to be vital to local economies, and, therefore, necessary for strategic industries and the green energy transition.

But a large share of these minerals are located in conflict-affected and high-risk areas on the continent where exploitation sometimes contribute directly or indirectly to armed conflicts, environmental degradation and human rights violations.

In some cases, it has led to disruption of supply and consequently undermined the prospect of foreign investment in particular.

Various minerals trading bodies have sought to correct the system by issuing new responsible sourcing guidelines and obligations intended to ensure traceability of minerals resources, responsible mining regimes and to discourage the prospects of money laundering in the sector.