Speaking on behalf of the Ivorian government during the Interministerial Forum on Critical Minerals held on Friday, July 10, 2026, in Port-Bouët, Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire’s Minister of Mines, Petroleum and Energy, Mamadou Sangafowa-Coulibaly, called on Africa to seize the opportunities presented by critical minerals to accelerate industrialization, create sustainable jobs, and strengthen its economic sovereignty through greater value addition to its natural resources.
Convinced that no African country can address the challenges associated with critical minerals on its own, the Ivorian minister advocated for stronger regional cooperation to develop integrated regional value chains.
“Africa is ready to make critical minerals a driver of economic and industrial transformation. The continent wants to move from exporting raw materials to local processing. From Abidjan, I invite investors and international partners to support Africa’s ambitions,” Sangafowa-Coulibaly said, urging participants to send a strong message from Abidjan to the rest of the world about Africa’s determination to accelerate the development and better harness the value of its natural resources.
Speaking about Côte d’Ivoire, the minister highlighted the country’s significant mining potential.
“Approximately 35% of Côte d’Ivoire’s territory is underlain by Birimian geological formations, which are rich in gold, while three-quarters of the national territory is considered potentially rich in critical minerals,” he said.
He recalled that developing and adding value to these resources lies at the heart of President Alassane Ouattara’s vision to elevate Côte d’Ivoire to upper-middle-income country status by 2030.
Fully aware of the challenges facing the continent, the President of the African Development Bank (AfDB) Group, Sidi Ould Tah, emphasized the importance of natural resources to global gross domestic product (GDP), the need for increased financing and investment, and the persistent challenge of Africa’s low level of economic integration.
In response to these challenges, Sidi Ould Tah pledged that the African Development Bank would deploy its technical expertise and financial capacity to support the development of regional value chains capable of processing Africa’s mineral resources locally.
The forum brought together around thirty African ministers, development partners, investors, and industry experts to discuss strategies for unlocking the continent’s critical mineral potential and fostering sustainable industrial development.
For the record, Africa holds nearly 30% of the world’s critical mineral reserves, with an estimated value of $29.5 trillion, representing approximately 20% of global mineral resources. More than $8.6 trillion worth of these reserves remain untapped, even as global demand is projected to increase dramatically by 2040—by more than 1,000% for platinum group metals, 842% for lithium, and 88% for copper.