President Bola Tinubu is set to lead a fresh continental push to stop Africa’s mineral wealth from leaving the continent largely as raw materials, as he chairs a high-level summit on critical minerals in New York next month.
The meeting, convened by the Africa Minerals Strategy Group on September 21, 2026, will be held in Manhattan on the sidelines of the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly.
Tinubu, who is the Chairman of the AMSG General Assembly, will chair the Third High-Level Roundtable on Critical Minerals Development in Africa, with the gathering expected to bring together African leaders and government representatives, ministers, global investors, development finance institutions, multilateral organisations, and executives from mining, technology and logistics companies.
A statement issued by AMSG on Sunday said the summit, themed “From Resources to Wealth: Continental Cooperation for Mineral Value Addition,” comes as major economies intensify the search for secure supplies of minerals required for electric vehicles, renewable energy, advanced manufacturing, artificial intelligence, digital infrastructure and defence technologies.
It read, “Africa is set to make a major push for greater control over its critical minerals future as the Africa Minerals Strategy Group convenes its Third High-Level Roundtable on Critical Minerals Development in Africa in Manhattan, New York, on September 21, 2026, on the sidelines of the 81st United Nations General Assembly.
“The Roundtable will be chaired by His Excellency Bola Tinubu, President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and Chairperson of the AMSG General Assembly, underscoring Africa’s determination to place critical minerals at the centre of the continent’s industrial, economic and geopolitical agenda.”
Africa holds substantial deposits of several minerals at the centre of the global scramble, including lithium, copper, cobalt, graphite, manganese and rare earth elements.
