Zambia pushes pan-African minerals exchange

ZAMBIAN President Hakainde Hichilema is championing plans for a pan-African minerals and metals exchange, aimed at helping resource-rich nations capture more value from their natural wealth, said Bloomberg News on Tuesday.The initiative would let Africa’s second-largest copper producer secure more output for domestic beneficiation, addressing rising public pressure for greater local participation in mineral wealth, said Jito Kayumba, an adviser to Hichilema on finance and investment, told the newswire.“There’s been growing discontent,” Kayumba said, noting strong appetite among young Zambians and Africans more broadly to benefit directly from resources extracted in their countries.The plan reflects a wider continental trend, with the DRC, Guinea, Ghana and Zimbabwe among nations pursuing reforms to expand local refining, ownership and export restrictions on raw minerals, said Bloomberg News.Hichilema faces reelection next month, and the exchange proposal features in his party’s manifesto. Kayumba said a new cabinet would treat it as an early priority and could begin engagement almost immediately if he wins.The concept would extend Zambia’s existing metals-trading partnership with Mercuria Energy Group. Talks on the idea have already taken place with the DRC and two other unnamed countries, Kayumba said.The IEA estimates Africa captures under 1% of global value from clean-energy manufacturing despite supplying a large share of the raw critical minerals involved. Kayumba warned that failing to deliver economic benefits to Africa’s fast-growing youth population risks fuelling instability, pointing to unrest across the Sahel.The post Zambia pushes pan-African minerals exchange appeared first on Miningmx.Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Mining.com Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Mining.com