The AFC has grown its total asset value to US$10 billion. Can you comment on this achievement?

We are very proud of this milestone. The AFC goes beyond deploying capital and focuses on projects with a direct impact on the communities. To give an example in the mining space, we are investing US$175 million in the Baomahun gold project in Sierra Leone. By partaking in the development of an almost 4 million oz deposit in a jurisdiction that has been broadly overlooked, the AFC has an impact on the localities for the next 20 to 30 years while the asset is producing. This investment supports AFC’s developmental mandate through strong support for an African mining company aligned with the Corporation’s objectives, including local content and capacity building, indigenization, beneficiation, and value addition.

AFC’s total membership has now reached 42 countries. What attracts African economies to become AFC members?

The fact that countries like Egypt or South Africa, which are leading economies by GDP in the continent, are joining the AFC is a testament to the value we bring not only in terms of direct investment from our organization, since some countries may not necessarily need that intervention, but in terms of catalyzing additional capital. This has become extremely important especially post-Covid when we see a scarcity of capital inflows in the continent.

What kind of mining projects is AFC prioritizing?

We have been engaging in different projects, including being the largest financier for the producing Thor Explorations Segilola project, the only commercial gold mining project in Nigeria. Outside of gold, we are also increasingly focused on critical minerals and we will be playing a leading role in this space, but we must move from extraction to beneficiation and return value on the continent so that we are not repeating the oil curse. A study that we launched together with Bloomberg NEF showed that it is three times cheaper to set up processing plants for minerals in Africa than it would cost for a similar plant in North America.

We have also partnered geo-mapping company, Xcalibur Multiphysics, to understand better the geological potential of different partner countries.

Do you see a willingness to beneficiate in Africa from developers, investors, and governments?

It is a catch-22 situation because developers might go for that tried-and-tested model of shipping to China, where they have a captive off-take market and a mature processing environment with guaranteed returns rather than taking the risk of building the processing facility. As an African-based organization, we can take that downstream processing risk. In Gabon, for instance, we are building a smelter to achieve full value chain integration for manganese. Without that layer of beneficiation, the ore would be shipped to China or other jurisdictions with adequate beneficiation capacity. I believe most investors want to do the same, but they do not have the right means, so by partnering with AFC they gain institutional and political cover. Also, more countries, like the DRC, are requiring that value-enhancing element before awarding licenses. We hope that increased enforcement of local value addition through government policies and interventions along with proven successful models of full value chain integration would encourage increased beneficiation.

Do you think the world is more attuned to the opportunities in Africa, and will this lead to a more diverse universe of investors in a continent where China has had the biggest grip in the last 10 years?

We see a remarkable amount of interest in the African mining space, especially from the Americas. We have met various delegations from the US and they are very eager to partner with AFC on projects. It is no coincidence Kamala Harris visited Zambia and Tanzania, both very rich in critical minerals, which indicates the keen interest from the US to support Africa in the new economy. Likewise, Asian countries have always shown a lot of interest and a higher tolerance for risk in Africa, with multiple acquisitions of African projects by Chinese entities in recent years. So I do see more and more interest and potentially a higher capital inflow in the mining sector.

Do you have a final message?

The AFC has deployed over US$1 billion in the natural resources space in the last 15 years. We are a home for investors looking for opportunities on the continent, and we can help partners navigate and de-risk those opportunities.