Minerals Commission Chief Executive Officer Isaac Tandoh has called on African mining regulators to move beyond fragmented, country-by-country policies and work towards a common framework for regulating the continent’s critical minerals.
Speaking at the Regulatory Authorities Roundtable of the Egypt Mining Forum, Mr Tandoh proposed the development of a unified Pan-African Critical Minerals Charter to strengthen cooperation among African regulatory authorities.
The roundtable, organised by the Africa Minerals Strategy Group (AMSG), was held under the theme, “Strengthening Continental Cooperation on African Minerals Regulation.”
Mr Tandoh said greater regulatory harmonisation was necessary to prevent competition among African countries from creating opportunities for foreign investors to exploit differences in tax regimes and regulatory requirements.
“Africa’s minerals are critical not because global markets say so, but because they hold the key to our continent’s economic sovereignty and industrial future,” he said.
He argued that African countries should establish common approaches that enable them to retain greater value from their mineral resources and use mining to support domestic industrial development.
Mr Tandoh also outlined Ghana’s regulatory reforms aimed at increasing state returns, promoting local value addition and strengthening environmental compliance.
He called for mining agreements and concessions to be subject to clear conditions covering local employment, technology transfer and community investment, while stressing the need to end automatic contract renewals and unmonitored privileges.
The meeting brought together African mining regulators, policymakers and industry stakeholders to discuss greater cooperation in mineral regulation and the development of strategies for securing the continent’s mineral resources.
Participants pledged closer multilateral cooperation to strengthen Africa’s position in the development and management of its mineral resources.
