Africa must reverse mining resource curse
Madam,
$frican resource rich 6tates continue to suffer from the resource curse, a term coined by scholar 5ichard $uty in 199 to illustrate the confounding nature of the relationship between natural resource abundance and un derdevelopment.
6ince the 19 0s, there has been a correlation between natural resource wealth and poor development out comes in resource rich countries. 6ome of the key manifestations of the curse include corruption, widespread poverty, limited human development, weak institutions, undermined free dom of expression and little transpar ency and accountability.
CHANGE
,n the context of climate change, which disproportionately affects low income and developing countries, reversing the resource curse is more critical than ever. This can only be achieved by strengthening institutional quality and good natural resource governance mechanisms. The most important element of sound govern ance in this respect is to empower local people to play a key role in decisions pertaining to extraction projects in their ecosystems.
The conclusion of &2P , the
th iteration of the 8nited 1ations &limate &hange &onference, further cemented the need to bolster institutional quality and build strong resource governance mechanisms to adapt to climate change and ensure energy justice for all. De spite significant progress since 1990, more than 00 million people nearly
0 per cent of the continent still don’t have electricity.
To reverse the resource curse and ensure energy justice for all $fricans, radically improved environmental, social and governance (6G perfor mance has become increasingly impor tant. $t &2P , the global north’s re sponsibility for climate change was not sufficiently recognised, while disunity among $frican leaders to proactively deal with climate change effectively remains unhelpful. $frican countries do face a double edged sword, because those with fossil fuel resources remain adamant that these should be exploited for development gain, while doing so risks those countries being locked into development pathways that crowd out renewable energy opportunities.
To realise the latter, $frican countries such as =ambia, 0o]ambique and 6outh $frica must unlock investment into exploring for and extracting crit ical minerals required, such as cobalt, lithium, copper, platinum group met als, manganese, chrome, and nickel, both for a global energy transition and to confront energy deficits at home.
COMBINATION
$ combination of 6tate owned and multinational mining companies, such as =ambia &onsolidated &opper 0ines ,nvestment +oldings, Total(nergies and $nglo $merican in the respective countries have continued to show great interest in exploring and extracting critical minerals.
8nlocking this investment into $f rican mining will require stability, security and responsible supply chains standing desks, flexible seating, charging ports and open spaces. 0any pupils will report better grades, attendance, and improved creativity in such active learning environments.
IMPLEMENT
There are affordable alternatives for schools to implement. 6imple things, like making the classroom interactive with pupils facing each other, putting up whiteboards, installing a group table for pupils and space for the educators to move around the room and these can be done immediately.
(qually important is the pupils’ wellness. &hildren are multi fac eted, complex creatures. By fac toring in their mental wellbeing in our education plan, we can anchored on addressing environmen tal, social and governance risks in operating environments. 0oreover, (6G integration has become the cor nerstone of attracting investment and $frican governments should be geared towards creating a policy environment that champions genuine (6G perfor mance in the mining sector and curtails green washing.
:hile the $frican continent is posi tioning itself to benefit from the green energy transition, the exploration and production of fossil fuels controver sially remains central to the develop ment trajectory of several developing countries.
The global shift towards a green energy transition has put $frica in an opportune position to meet the global demand for critical raw ma terials required for moving away from hydrocarbon dependence and secure economic development. But this requires decisive leadership that prioritises energy security and socioec onomic development in a meaningful and sustainable manner that benefits all people.
Busisipho Siyobi
see problems coming and we can deal with them quickly and appropriately.
:e are in the fifth industrial revolution, yet we are teaching from a first industrial revolution mindset. By implementing new education solutions ± which are readily available and relatively easy to implement ± we can make sure the kingdom’s pupils exit school with good pass grades and are also qualified to enter the job market immediately. :e need to fully embrace modern educational trends because the only way to guarantee a future for our children is by re imagining and re invigor ating our education system.
Shaun Fuchs