‘We’ll process our minerals at home’ – Mahama warns against new scramble for Africa’s resources

• Mahama warned against a new scramble for Africa’s natural resources and critical minerals.

• He said Ghana and other African countries must process minerals locally to create jobs and retain value.

• He called for stronger intra-African trade and affordable financing to support industrialisation.

Addressing the 81st United Nations General Assembly in New York, President Mahama said Africa would not remain a passive participant in the exploitation of its resources.

“Africa will not remain a passive arena for a new scramble for resources,” he said, adding that “critical mineral extraction in Africa must not replicate the colonial era exploitation.”

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He said African countries must prioritise local processing and industrialisation to create jobs and retain more value from their natural resources.

“We’ll process our minerals at home. We will build local industries that create dignified jobs for our youth and retain the value of our natural resources in Africa,” President Mahama said.

The President also highlighted the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), whose Secretariat is hosted in Ghana, as an important platform for expanding intra-African trade and supporting industrial growth.

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“The African Continental Free Trade Area, whose Secretariat Ghana is proud to host, is our engine for intra-African trade, structural transformation and industrial growth,” he said.

President Mahama also raised concerns about the financial pressures facing developing countries, saying nations in the global South often face significantly higher borrowing costs than industrialised countries.

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“Developing nations in the global South borrow at interest rates that are up to 8 times higher than industrialized nations,” he said.

He called for long-term and affordable financing to help developing economies invest in human capital, industrialisation and climate adaptation, arguing that Africa should be treated as an equal partner in global development.