African Minerals Development Summit: Tinubu To Serve As Chair

Nigeria’s President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is set to chair the Third High-Level Roundtable on Critical Minerals Development in Africa, as the continent intensifies efforts to move beyond exporting raw minerals and capture greater value from its mineral resources.

The Africa Minerals Strategy Group (AMSG) in a statement said the September 21, 2026 meeting in New York, on the sidelines of the 81st United Nations General Assembly, will bring together African leaders, ministers, investors, development finance institutions and global industry players.

Under the theme, “From Resources to Wealth: Continental Cooperation for Mineral Value Addition,” the summit will focus on attracting investment, strengthening continental cooperation and developing competitive mineral value chains.

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AMSG said Africa must invest in local processing, value addition and integrated mineral value chains to transform its vast mineral wealth into industrial and economic opportunities.

The group noted that Africa holds some of the world’s largest reserves of critical minerals, including lithium, copper, cobalt, graphite, manganese and rare earth elements, but much of these resources are still exported with limited local processing.

The meeting will also feature the unveiling of the Continental Integration and Economic Assurance Declaration (CIEAD), aimed at strengthening cooperation on mineral value addition, investment mobilisation, supply-chain security and policy coordination.

The proposed CIEAD Finance Window is expected to help mobilise capital for mineral processing, infrastructure and technology.

AMSG said Africa must seize the growing global demand for critical minerals to drive manufacturing, technology transfer, infrastructure development, job creation and sustainable economic growth.

The organisation stressed that the continent must move from being a supplier of raw materials to becoming an active architect of the global critical minerals economy.