African countries rich in copper, cobalt, and graphite are gaining strategic confidence, linking raw-materials policy with industrial ambitions. As a February 2026 report by the German think tank SWP underscores, the European Union (EU) is still searching for a coherent response to Africa's challenges. The SWP recommends focusing on the most critical topics and taking a strategic approach to mining projects.
In 2025, the African Union (AU) adopted the African Green Minerals Strategy (AGMS), building on the Africa Mining Vision of 2009. The strategy promotes local value creation, integration of regional supply chains, and initiatives such as shared infrastructure. The goal is to shift from raw-material exports to processing and green industrial supply chains. The African Development Bank (AfDB) and the African Minerals Development Centre (AMDC) support implementation through a Green Minerals fund and investment platforms. Emphasis is placed on environmental, social, and governance (ESG) standards to boost the competitiveness of African producers.
The African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) is advancing on industrial pillars, but negotiations on raw materials remain difficult. The AMDC is not yet fully ratified — only four of the AU's 55 member states had done so by the end of 2025, Nigeria among them, while Ghana and South Africa are still absent. Overlapping initiatives, such as the Africa Minerals Strategy Group (AMSG) established in 2024 (with Saudi Arabia as an observer), operate outside AU structures, weakening continental coordination and complicating talks with partners like the European Union.
Momentum for dialogue is shifting to national capitals. The governments of Zambia, South Africa, Ghana, and Tanzania are rolling out new critical raw materials (CRM) strategies that combine openness to investment with state intervention — through export restrictions, processing targets, and incentives. These are forms of "resource nationalism," nationally focused and with limited continental linkages. The Zambia–DRC battery cluster, for example, is attracting attention, but progress has been moderate.
South Africa co-chairs the UN Panel on Critical Minerals for the Energy Transition and placed CRM on the G20 agenda in 2025. The Leaders' Declaration welcomed the G20 Framework Program on CRM, addressing the priorities of producer countries (value addition, local processing, sustainable mining) as well as the concerns of importers like Europe. African governments often depend on external partners, but they are not passively waiting for Europe. Competition is fierce. China is consolidating its dominance via the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), combining diplomatic support, state financing, and infrastructure for long-term offtake. Gulf states — Saudi Arabia and the UAE — are expanding their resource diplomacy through sovereign wealth funds and investments in mining and infrastructure. India and Turkey are stepping up their presence in mining and manufacturing. The United States under Trump is pursuing a transactional, bilateral model — based on political trust or tariffs, with limited value for long-term industrial partnerships. African governments choose partners on the basis of their ability to deliver concrete investment and industrial outcomes, effectively favoring no one.
At first glance, the EU is well positioned, because Africa is open to new partners and both sides want sustainable relationships. But priorities diverge: the EU focuses on supply security and industrial resilience, while Africa prioritizes investment and development. The agendas are not incompatible, but the key lies in strengthening project execution.
Since 2021, the EU has expanded its engagement in Africa. The Critical Raw Materials Act of 2024 anchors a strategy of reducing dependency and diversifying, while recognizing external partnerships. The Commission has concluded 15 CRM partnerships globally, including five in Africa: Rwanda (suspended), the DRC, Zambia, Namibia, and South Africa. Dialogue with the AU continues, and a Clean Trade and Investment Partnership (CTIP) is being explored with South Africa for industrial cooperation.
These initiatives have raised the EU's visibility in African mining. The partnership model commits both sides to cooperation in five areas: supply-chain integration, infrastructure financing, research and innovation, capacity building, and sustainable sourcing. Implementation proceeds via bilateral roadmaps under Team Europe. The greatest progress has been in governance — in Zambia, for instance, technical assistance in resource and environmental management is highly valued. South Africa's signature on the sidelines of the 2025 G20 is a signal of support for multilateralism, despite tensions and a U.S. boycott.
Development instruments are well suited to sustainability and capacity building, but less so for mobilizing the industrial investment Africa expects. The EU launched its first strategic CRM projects in 2025, including five in Africa: four in mining (Madagascar, Malawi, Namibia, South Africa) and one in refining (Zambia), covering five of the EU's 13 strategic CRMs.
The EU's approach remains market-driven and cautious, which delays projects in a competitive CRM market. China, via the BRI, employs a state-led model that relies on diplomacy, state financing, and infrastructure for long-term offtake. The Gulf states are expanding their presence through sovereign wealth funds. The United States is intensifying intervention — for instance, the DFC in 2025 joined a $1.8 billion consortium with investors (including from Abu Dhabi). For Europe, by contrast, CRM projects depend on voluntary private-sector engagement. European corporations rely on market mechanisms, and investment in mining outside the EU remains limited. Despite geopolitical pressure, even upstream engagement has not increased significantly.
Global Gateway, launched in 2021, is not a single instrument — it combines EU tools (EFSD+) with member-state contributions under Team Europe. Its financial envelope totals 300 billion euros for 2021–2027, of which 150 billion is earmarked for Africa. In the African context, Global Gateway focuses on transport corridors (such as Lobito — Angola–DRC–Zambia), multimodal network integration, and trade. The project's goal by 2030 is to connect African and European transport networks, reduce transit times, and support the AfCFTA.
