Freetown, 22nd October 2026- Sierra Leone’s Minister of Mines and Mineral Resources, Julius Daniel Mattai, has called for stronger regional cooperation among African nations to ensure the continent benefits more from its vast mineral wealth through local processing, industrialisation and value addition.
The minister made the call while attending the Mining in Motion conference in Accra, Ghana, where policymakers, industry leaders and investors gathered to discuss the future of Africa’s mining sector.
As part of the summit, Mattai participated in a high-level panel discussion titled “From Ore to Industry: Building Competitive African Beneficiation Corridors,” focusing on strategies to move African countries beyond the export of raw minerals towards local processing and industrial development.
Addressing participants, the minister stressed that African countries must work collectively to unlock the full economic potential of their mineral resources. He argued that stronger regional partnerships are essential for attracting investment, developing cross-border infrastructure and building integrated mineral value chains capable of generating greater returns for African economies.
According to Mattai, the continent’s mineral wealth should serve as a catalyst for industrial growth, economic diversification and job creation rather than continuing to fuel exports of unprocessed raw materials.
His participation at the conference underscores Sierra Leone’s continued efforts to promote responsible mineral development, encourage beneficiation and value addition, attract investment and maximise the contribution of the mining sector to national development.
The minister also urged governments, investors, industry leaders and development partners to translate discussions into concrete action through practical partnerships that support mineral processing, infrastructure development and technical capacity building across Africa.
He maintained that closer regional cooperation would enable African countries to transform their mineral resources into drivers of sustainable economic growth and shared prosperity, while positioning the continent to capture a greater share of value from its extractive industries.
The Mining in Motion conference is widely regarded as a key platform for discussions on the future of mining and mineral development across Africa, bringing together stakeholders from government, business and development organisations to explore pathways for strengthening the sector.
