Nigeria Signs AMSG Charter as AFNIS 2025 Ends in Abuja

FolalumiAlaran in Abuja

Nigeria has formally signed the charter of the Africa Minerals Strategy Group (AMSG), joining other African nations in a coordinated push for value addition, local content, and mineral resource optimisation across the continent.

The signing was one of the major highlights of the 4th African Natural Resources and Energy Investment Summit (AFNIS), which ended in Abuja on Thursday.

The three-day event, themed “Harnessing Local Content for Sustainable Development,” brought together policymakers, investors, and industry leaders to examine Africa’s role in global resource politics and how the continent can shift from raw extraction to beneficiation and industrialisation.

The Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dr. Dele Alake, in his keynote address, said Nigeria’s reforms under the Renewed Hope Agenda have attracted over $800 million in critical minerals investment.

He noted the country is positioning itself as a hub for lithium processing and electric vehicle technologies, stressing that Nigeria’s new licensing regime would prioritise value retention and downstream development.

Permanent Secretary of the ministry, Engr. Faruk Yusuf Yabo, said Africa must seize the opportunity to become co-architects of its future by building strong investment partnerships and rejecting the export of unprocessed raw materials.

The summit reviewed the continent’s strategic position in global energy transition and the urgency of regional coordination.

Discussions also focused on the expansion of local processing capacity, the establishment of joint industrial corridors, mineral testing infrastructure, and a pan-African financing mechanism to support beneficiation and green industry development.

Delegates agreed on the need to adapt Nigeria’s local content framework across African jurisdictions, while also operationalising the AMSG’s working groups to define roadmaps for collective action.

The official unveiling of the “Africans for Africa” Fund marked another key moment during the summit.

First announced in 2024, the initiative seeks to pool domestic capital to finance strategic resource projects and elevate African ownership in extractive industries.

Presentations by GeoScan Technology, Oildynamix, and X-Calibur Smart Mapping highlighted the role of artificial intelligence and satellite data in accelerating mineral exploration and improving accuracy. The importance of data generation and technological integration was repeatedly stressed as a foundation for attracting credible investment.

The summit also addressed the need for ethical and sustainable mining practices. Experts called for African-led mineral reporting codes such as the Pan-African Resources Reporting Code (PARC), and emphasised the importance of radiological safety, environmental stewardship, and community involvement in extractive operations.

Delegations from countries including Liberia and Kenya expressed interest in replicating Nigeria’s content-driven model.

Several state governments, private companies, and institutions participated as sponsors and technical partners, including Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board, Segilola Resources, Xcalibur Smart Mapping, Kaduna Electric, ANRML, NBET, and others.

AFNIS 2025 closed with renewed calls for African unity in shaping the continent’s resource destiny, and a shared commitment to move beyond raw exports toward industrial strength, sustainability, and inclusive economic growth.