Mining
Shaping Africa’s Mining Future: Community Engagement, Local Content, Skills Transfer and Shared Infrastructure at African Mining Week (AMW) 2026
The 2026 edition of African Mining Week (AMW) – officially launched last week – will bring together global mining companies, investors, policymakers and industry stakeholders to explore emerging opportunities across Africa's minerals sector. The event will examine how Africa – the world's largest producer of key energy-transition metals including platinum group metals, cobalt, chromium and manganese – is shaping global supply chains and attracting increasing investment from markets such as the U.S., China and Europe.
AMW 2026 will take place under the theme, “Mining the Future: Critical Resources, Sustainability, and Community Development,” aiming to showcase Africa's strategic role in the global critical minerals market, highlight innovative approaches to sustainable and responsible mining and foster collaboration between governments and industry. Building on the success of the 2025 edition, the event will provide a platform to discuss sustainable market growth, environmental stewardship and socioeconomic development across the continent.
Panels and discussions will highlight Africa's role as a global hub for critical energy-transition minerals, with countries such as Zimbabwe, Mali, Namibia and Malawi advancing local value-addition mandates and strategically managing raw mineral exports to maximize domestic economic benefits. AMW 2026 will explore opportunities across the continent's critical minerals sector, from mining and exploration to processing and industrialization, providing insights into how investors and governments can collaborate to strengthen supply chains and unlock the full potential of Africa's mineral wealth.
Environmental stewardship and responsible mining practices will also be a core focus. Financiers including the Africa Finance Corporation, World Bank, IFC and Afreximbank increasingly tie funding to ESG performance, and panels will examine how renewable energy solutions – from Power Purchase Agreements and Independent Power Producer arrangements to energy wheeling and onsite generation – can reduce emissions, improve energy security and enhance project bankability. The event will also highlight innovative strategies for sustainable resource development that balance commercial returns with ecological and social responsibility.
Community engagement, local content, skills transfer and shared infrastructure remain central to Africa's mining policies. AMW 2026 will showcase projects that deliver tangible socioeconomic benefits, from job creation and supplier development to gender empowerment and improved community infrastructure. Discussions will also unpack tax regimes, community-benefit frameworks and ESG obligations that shape project implementation, emphasizing how mining can serve as a catalyst for inclusive growth across the continent.
"African Mining Week 2026 will be a showcase of Africa's potential to power the future," states Rachelle Kasongo, Events & Project Director at Energy Capital & Power. "The event will highlight how the continent's critical resources can be responsibly developed, how innovative practices are shaping a more sustainable mining sector and how investments can create meaningful benefits for local communities. It's a space for leaders to exchange ideas, forge partnerships and explore solutions that drive long-term impact for both industry and society."
African Mining Week serves as a premier platform for exploring the full spectrum of mining opportunities across Africa. The event is held alongside the African Energy Week: Invest in African Energies 2026 conference from October 12-16 in Cape Town. Sponsors, exhibitors and delegates can learn more by contacting sales@energycapitalpower.com.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Energy Capital & Power.Central Bank of Egypt and Afreximbank Sign a Memorandum of Understanding for the Establishment of a Gold Bank programme in Egypt
The Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) and African Export – Import Bank (Afreximbank) (www.Afreximbank.com) yesterday signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for the establishment of a pan African Gold Bank. This strategic initiative aims to formalise gold value chains, strengthen Central Bank reserves and reduce Africa's reliance on foreign refining and trading hubs.
This landmark MoU was signed by the Governor of the Central Bank of Egypt (CBE), H.E. Mr. Hassan Abdalla, and the President and Chairman of the Board of Directors of Afreximbank, Dr. George Elombi during a ceremony held at the Central Bank of Egypt.
The establishment of the Gold Bank programme is in line with Egypt's vision to expand strategic partnerships and strengthen mutual collaboration with African states across diverse fields, as well as Afreximbank's focus on promoting and accelerating value addition, and strategic mineral processing.
The partnership also builds on a shared vision between the CBE and Afreximbank to support domestic manufacturing, enhance sustainable development, and deepen regional financial and trade integration, fostering a robust and advanced African economic ecosystem.
Under this MoU, the two institutions will collaborate on commissioning a feasibility study to assess the technical, commercial, and regulatory requirements for developing an integrated Gold Bank ecosystem in a designated free zone in Egypt, with the participation of African countries. This includes the establishment of an internationally accredited refinery, secure vaulting facilities, and associated financial and trading services.
The initiative also targets the expansion of its scope across the continent, the engagement of governments, central banks, mining companies, and industry stakeholders to strengthen institutional collaboration, harmonize best practices, and facilitate the sustainable trade of gold and related services across Africa.
Commenting on the agreement, Mr. Hassan Abdalla emphasized that the initiative serves as a foundation that could progressively expand into a pan-African framework that would engage African governments, central banks, and market participants. He underscored Egypt's steadfast commitment to driving initiatives that promote economic integration across Africa, noting that the selection of Egypt as a potential hub - subject to the outcome of the study and subsequent approvals - reflects the African institutions' confidence in its readiness to foster continental mega projects. With its strategic geographic location at the crossroads of Africa, the Middle East, and Europe, Egypt is well positioned to serve as a natural hub for regional gold trade and financial innovation.
Speaking at the signing ceremony, Dr. George Elombi affirmed the joint commitment of both institutions to collaborating closely, aligning efforts and resources to promote financial stability, and contributing to sustainable economic prosperity across Africa.
Dr Elombi said: “Today's ceremony may appear simple, yet it has tremendous economic consequences for our continent. We make a bold declaration that Africa's gold must serve African people. This MoU, which is part of Afreximbank's vision to make Africa's resources benefit Africans, creates an African Gold Bank that will help us to begin to fundamentally alter the way we extract, refine, manage, value, store, and trade our gold resources, with the primary aim of retaining value on the continent. By effectively building up the gold stock, as other major economies have done, we enhance the continent's resilience, minimise vulnerability to external shocks, improve currency stability and convertibility, and create wealth within the continent.”
Afreximbank and the Central Bank of Egypt have enjoyed a long cordial relationship, with Egypt being the Bank's largest shareholder and its host.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Afreximbank.Media Contact:
Vincent Musumba
Communications and Events Manager (Media Relations)
Email: press@afreximbank.com
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About Afreximbank:
African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) is a Pan-African multilateral financial institution mandated to finance and promote intra- and extra-African trade. For over 30 years, the Bank has been deploying innovative structures to deliver financing solutions that support the transformation of the structure of Africa's trade, accelerating industrialisation and intra-regional trade, thereby boosting economic expansion in Africa. A stalwart supporter of the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA), Afreximbank has launched a Pan-African Payment and Settlement System (PAPSS) that was adopted by the African Union (AU) as the payment and settlement platform to underpin the implementation of the AfCFTA. Working with the AfCFTA Secretariat and the AU, the Bank has set up a US$10 billion Adjustment Fund to support countries effectively participating in the AfCFTA. At the end of December 2024, Afreximbank's total assets and contingencies stood at over US$40.1 billion, and its shareholder funds amounted to US$7.2 billion. Afreximbank has investment grade ratings assigned by GCR (international scale) (A), Moody's (Baa2), China Chengxin International Credit Rating Co., Ltd (CCXI) (AAA), Japan Credit Rating Agency (JCR) (A-) and Fitch (BBB-). Afreximbank has evolved into a group entity comprising the Bank, its equity impact fund subsidiary called the Fund for Export Development Africa (FEDA), and its insurance management subsidiary, AfrexInsure (together, "the Group"). The Bank is headquartered in Cairo, Egypt.
For more information, visit: www.Afreximbank.com