Category: Reversing the resource curse

For many African countries, Covid-19 has provided a useful cover for leaders to advance authoritarian ends, consolidate their autocracies and undermine whatever rule of law existed before. This seems especially true for ruling coalitions in countries with access to mineral or hydrocarbon wealth.

Is there a convincing reason why communities who host resource extraction projects in their ecosystems are not considered investors in development economics? Is it fair or just to think that, in welcoming and hosting mining, oil and gas companies into their ecosystems, local communities have nothing to lose but everything to gain?

Our latest vodcast in our Reversing the Resource Curse series is now out. We’re pleased to welcome Chief Consultant and CEO of Strategic Communications Solutions, Deji Haastrup.

Development is fraught with several “backs-and-forth”, leaving us with no universally accepted way to realise development aspirations.

Lead Researcher in the Natural Resource Governance Programme at Good Governance Africa, Busisipho Siyobi speaks to Co-founder and Spokesperson of the Amadiba Crisis Committee, Nonhle Mbuthuma, who represents the Xolobeni community.

The Xolobeni community refers to a group of people from five coastal villages on South Africa’s Wild Coast who have been resisting plans to exploit world-class deposits of titanium-bearing minerals on a section of this coastline for almost fifteen years.

The African continent is rich in natural resources like gold, diamonds, oil, bauxite, coltan, and much more. Several countries such as Nigeria, Angola, Democratic Republic of Congo and Chad, among others, have not been able to translate these resources into development for the benefit of its people.

Given the fragile socio-political and environmental context in which the extractives industry so often operates in Africa, transparency is an absolute necessity for companies if they are to be regarded as good neighbours, and avoid becoming embroiled in destructive conflict.

Extractive resources are different from other resources in many ways. To begin with, extractive resources (petroleum, minerals, etc.) are strategic and can even make advanced countries such as Japan depend on less developed countries like Angola and Algeria.

When oil, natural gas, or similar natural resources are discovered the expectation is that their exploitation will dramatically and materially benefit the population of the host country.

Tune in to our first vodcast of the campaign above, in which GGA SADC Executive Director, Chris Maroleng, hosts colleagues, Busisipho Siyobi (Lead Researcher, Natural Resource Governance Programme), and Dr Ross Harvey (Director of Research & Programmes).