Africa’s largest mining investment summit kicked off in South Africa’s city of Cape Town on Monday to discuss the future of mining and investment opportunities on the continent.
The four-day summit, themed “Future-proofing African Mining, today!” has attracted dozens of ministers from around the world, mining experts, and investors among other professionals.
South Africa’s Mineral and Petroleum Resources Minister Gwede Mantashe, who represented President Cyril Ramaphosa, at the opening of the summit urged African countries to take advantage of the vast mineral wealth they have so as to develop amid the booming demand for industrially valuable minerals.
Mantashe said despite Africa having the world’s largest mineral reserves it remains poor.
'World's richest mining jurisdiction'
“Africa is the world’s richest mining jurisdiction, possessing at least 90% of the world’s chromium and platinum, 40% of the world’s gold, and the largest reserves of the world’s cobalt, vanadium, manganese and uranium,” he said.
Mantashe also said Africans must have a share in their countries' mineral resources to avoid having a mineral-rich country with poor citizens.
“We are inviting you to come and invest in South Africa, please make your money and if you make money you will employ our people and meet all obligations we set up for you,” he said.
Reacting to US President Donald Trump’s threat to cut all funding to South Africa after President Cyril Ramaphosa last month signed the Expropriation Bill into law where state entities can expropriate land in the public interest for various purposes, Mantashe said: “Let’s mobilise Africa, let’s withhold minerals to US. If they don’t give us money, let’s not give them minerals.”
'We are not beggars'
He said in reality, the US takes Africa’s minerals but says it is withdrawing funding. “We have minerals on the continent, therefore we have something that we have,” he said, adding: “We are not beggars.”
Trump on Sunday threatened that he was cutting future funding to South Africa over alleged land confiscation and mistreatment of "certain classes of people."
"South Africa is confiscating land, and treating certain classes of people VERY BADLY. It is a bad situation that the Radical Left Media doesn’t want to so much as mention. A massive Human Rights VIOLATION, at a minimum, is happening for all to see," he said on his Truth Social platform.
South Africa's president Cyril Ramaphosa on Monday rejected claims by Trump, saying Pretoria did “not confiscate” any land.
Legal process
“The recently adopted Expropriation Act is not a confiscation instrument, but a constitutionally mandated legal process that ensures public access to land in an equitable and just manner as guided by the constitution,” Ramaphosa said in a statement.
“The South African government has not confiscated any land.”
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