Africa Headlines International

Namibia to cull elephants and hippos, distribute meat to drought-hit population

Namibia plans to kill 83 elephants and 30 hippos and distribute the meat to population affected by a prolonged drought, the environment minister said. The Namibian government also plans to cull other species including 60 buffalo, as well as 50 impala, 100 blue wildebeest, 300 zebra, and 100 elands. The government argues that the move […]

Africa Business Emerging Markets Energy Headlines International

Africa needs stronger resources governance amid current global critical minerals rush — experts

African governments need to develop robust strategies for the critical minerals sector amid global rush for the continent’s lithium and other strategically important rare metals, a recent research has found. Demand for lithium, for example, tripled from 2017 to 2022, while the critical minerals market doubled in five years, reaching US$320 billion in 2022, according […]

Africa Energy Headlines International

Namibia eyes OPEC membership as large-scale oil production looms

Namibia has announced its plan to join the OPEC “family” which comes at a time when the southern African nation gears up to potentially become the continent’s fourth-largest oil producer by the next decade. If exploitation of its giant offshore oil and gas discoveries goes as planned, Namibia could turn into a significant oil producer, […]

Business Emerging Markets Energy Headlines

EU’s Critical Raw Materials Act aimed at breaking China’s grip on Africa — study

The European Union’s recently agreed-upon Critical Raw Materials Act (CRMA) does not target China but is aimed “simply [at] diversifying sources of supply,” a senior EU official has said, just as a recent study highlighted the bloc’s continuing efforts to close deals with resource-rich African nations to reduce its dependence on China for critical raw […]

Business Energy Finance Headlines

Avoiding ‘resource curse’: why Africans benefit little from big oil and gas finds

Senegal joins other African countries like Nigeria or Namibia that have struggled to manage their oil and gas resources discovered in recent years for the real benefit of the people, including by improving the energy situation at home. The oil and gas finds in Africa have rarely lived up to their promise, often doing more […]

Europe Headlines International

Namibia slams former colonial ruler Germany for supporting Israel in ICJ genocide case

The Namibian presidency has condemned Germany’s “shocking decision” to reject the genocide case at the UN’s top court, accusing the former colonial ruler of not learning lessons of its ‘horrific history’ in the African country in the early 20th centry, and calling South Africa’s accusation at The Hague as ‘morally upright’. Namibia’s President Hage Geingob […]

Africa Energy Headlines International

Africa’s lithium mining boom risks fueling corruption and failing citizens — Global Witness

The new rush for lithium — sometimes referred to as ‘white gold’ — in Africa risks fueling corruption and harming local communities and the environment, according to a latest study by UK-based nonprofit Global Witness that investigated three emerging lithium mines in Zimbabwe, Namibia and Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). The study has found that […]

Business Emerging Markets Headlines

Europe eyes DRC, Zambia, other African states, seeking critical mineral pacts to cut reliance on China

The European Union is finalizing partnerships with the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Zambia to boost local industries as the bloc wants to mine its way out of its heavy dependence on foreign powers like China for critical materials needed to power its green transition. A planned memorandum of understanding is widely seen as […]

Africa Emerging Markets Energy Headlines International

Namibia: how Africa’s newest petro-state can avoid resource curse

Last year’s discovery off the shores of Namibia of an estimated 11 billion barrels of crude holds the promise of untold riches for this nation of 2.7 million people, but capitalizing on the bounty while avoiding the ills that afflict resource-rich countries in Africa — a phenomenon known as ‘resource curse’ — may prove challenging. […]

Energy Features Headlines

Namibia bans export of unprocessed vital minerals used in clean energy technologies

Namibia’s government has banned the export of unprocessed lithium and other critical minerals to capitalize on the growing global demand for metals used in clean energy technologies. The move prohibiting the export of unprocessed crushed lithium ore, cobalt, manganese, graphite and rare-earth metals and elements is in line with the South African country’s aim to […]