Tinubu pushes Africa to stop exporting raw minerals, demands local processing

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has urged African nations to form a coordinated bloc to halt the export of unprocessed minerals and instead develop domestic manufacturing and processing industries. Speaking through Vice President Kashim Shettima at the Africa Minerals Strategy Group High-Level Roundtable during the UN General Assembly in New York on Monday, Tinubu framed the shift as essential to keeping wealth generated by Africa's natural resources within the continent.

The President's intervention targeted what he characterized as a pattern of exploitation that has long disadvantaged African economies. Rather than allowing foreign buyers to purchase raw materials and capture profits through processing elsewhere, Tinubu advocated for integrated mineral value chains—a framework where African countries would handle extraction, refining, and manufacturing to retain greater economic benefit.

The AMSG roundtable, now in its third iteration, convenes African leaders to coordinate strategy around critical minerals development. Tinubu's call for an 'aggressive alliance' among member states reflects growing frustration among African policymakers over the continent's historical role as a primary materials supplier.

The emphasis on value addition directly affects Nigeria, which holds significant mineral deposits but has limited domestic processing capacity. The proposal seeks to reposition Africa from a passive supplier of commodities to an active participant in the mineral production chain.

No specific timeline, enforcement mechanisms, or list of target minerals was detailed in the available reports from the roundtable discussions.