The Impact of the Russia and Ukraine war on the Africa’s Minerals Resources Development– Opportunities and Challenges – MADI- Webinar Panel Discussion

Zoom link registration: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82980048172?pwd=emNvSlZpaTNQYkJzZGdMdlNVK3JlUT09

Background

The Russian – Ukraine conflict will likely impact on a number of aspects that affect Africa negatively and positively. While food security in Africa is being highlighted, there is less mention on the impact on minerals. Food production – agriculture optimal productivity requires minerals – especially fertilizers and fuel for transport and mechanized agriculture and food processing.

Russia has been the major supplier of oil and gas to most western countries. Western Countries especially USA and European countries who are hugely dependant on Russian oil and gas, are caught-up in between. Europe’s urgent need to diversify away from reliance on Russian oil and gas could present new opportunities for some African export markets.

On the other hand, Russia holds the world’s fourth-largest supply of rare earth elements and is a major producer of many of the minerals most critical for clean energy technology—including copper, nickel, and platinum. Diversifying global supply chains away from Russia (and China) is already encouraging the United States and others to invest in African mining.

The U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (DFC) is considering an investment in Namibia’s lithium mining industry, and President Biden’s proposed FY 2023 budget includes $1 billion for a Global Clean Energy Manufacturing initiative to build more resilient supply chains around the world.

Africa is also importing some mineral products other than food from Russia and Ukraine. South Africa Imports from Russia was US$529.78 Million during 2020, according to the United Nations COMTRADE database on international trade. South Africa Imports from Russia – data, historical chart and statistics – was last updated on May of 2022

The table below shows the import of some of these items by South Africa from Russia.

On the other hand, the world requires energy transition minerals and Africa has plenty of them. As countries struggle with the rising costs of energy prices due to the war what is in or not in for Africa? 

Africa has been following a non-aligned position regarding the war in Ukraine. The African Union, in a statement issued on 24 February, called on Russia and “any other regional or international actor to imperatively respect international law, territorial integrity and national sovereignty of Ukraine”

Russia has been slowly building relationships with Africa. Russia has pushed an agenda to sell nuclear technology part of its broader strategy with Africa. As of 2020, at least Africa Union member states had signed agreements to deploy nuclear power with support from Russia—and according to Ryan Collyer, acting CEO of Rosatom Central and Southern Africa the state-owned Russian nuclear company confirmed it was working with more than fifteen African markets in all, including on their next generation small modular reactors (SMRs). These AU member States include Ghana, Zambia, Kenya, South Africa, the Republic of Congo, Rwanda, Tanzania, Egypt, Algeria, Tunisia and Morocco.

Could all these global trends and interest in Africa’s resources provide opportunities for Africa? How is Africa positioned to take up the challenges/ What can Africa do to ensure the Agenda 2063 – The Africa We want – “A Global Strategy to Optimize use of Africa’s Resources for the benefit of all Africans” is not lost? Does Africa have a Strategy to respond to these issues? 

Objective 

The objective of the webinar is to establish how or if Africa is well prepared to respond to the global issues such as the Covid pandemic and now the war on Ukraine. How can Africa respond to the changes in the demand and supply of products such as oil and gas and energy transition minerals considering Africa’s own development agenda as defined by Agenda 2063 and the global Agenda 2030 (SDGs).

Africa has been pushing for industrialization, but this has been more on paper than action. Strategies after strategies have been developed and endorsed by AU Assembly but they remain unimplemented, these include but not limited to the following; Laos Plan of Action, Industrial Development Decade for Africa (IDDA One ) and (IDDA Two) from 1980 – 2000. The African productive capacity Initiative (APCI (2004), the Accelerated Industrial Development for Africa (AIDA), the Africa Mining Vision (AMV), the Boosting of Intra African Trade (BIAT), and now (IDDA Three) and the African Continental Free Trade Area Agreement (AfCFA) Agreement. All have pushed for Africa’s Industrialisation. However, Africa remains the most unindustrialized continent in the world and has been de-industrializing despite her natural and human resources ( with over 0% of her population under the age of 35 years) 

In other words, how can Africa position herself to take up the opportunities while responding to the global challenges such as Energy Transition. The fact that Africa is under-developed is a great opportunity for Africa to leapfrog into the new technologies without having to use the same polluting technologies that the rest of the world used to achieve their industrialisation. 

On the other hand, how can the International Agencies working in Africa shift their modus operandi to work in Africa for Africa’s Development as envisioned by the Global Agenda 2030 (the SDGs)?

These and other questions will be answered during the Webinar

Expected outcomes

1. A Clear Understanding of the opportunities and Challenges facing Africa as a result of the war
2. What are the solutions – or recommendations for solutions 
3. How can Africa Position herself to respond to the global demand and supply of the minerals because of the war and energy transition

Proposed speakers

Proposed speakers will be drawn from a wide spectrum of Instrtutions and organization working in the minerals resources space.  

These are the proposed Institutions and Organizations

• Minerals Africa Development Institution – MADI- 
• Intergovernmental Forum on Mining – IGF
• African Development bank – AfDB
• African Legal Support Facility – ALSF
• AU/UN – AMDC –
• Private Sector 
• Alternative Mining Indaba – AMI
• NGO representatives – SARW
• Academic Institutions – nelson madela Institute of technology