This was the message emerging from the Ministerial Symposium on the eve of Investing in African Mining Indaba 2026, featuring government leaders from several African states, as well as investors, bankers and business decision-makers from across the world.

Delivering the keynote speech at the plenary session of the Mining Indaba ministerial symposium, South Africa’s Minister of Mineral and Petroleum Resources, Gwede Mantashe said the event must promote inclusive global growth through solidarity, equality and sustainability.

He referenced the recent G20 Summit, the first on African soil, as proof of the growing faith in multilateral engagement, and Africa’s critical role in the global conversation.

“Global partnership for sustainable development is essential if we are to ensure no one is left behind,” he said. “Africa holds an unparalleled share of the natural resources essential for industrialisation, digitalisation, and global economic growth, yet our continent remains largely poor. This must come to an end.”

Mantashe pointed to agreements such as the G20 declaration, and the G20 Critical Minerals Framework, as providing a clear path to unlocking investment in mineral exploration, local beneficiation and governance for sustainable mining.

He said such agreements affirm the right of mineral-endowed countries to harness their resources for industrialisation and inclusive growth, while providing long-term certainty.

Mantashe echoed the theme of the symposium, “Banking on Africa: Mobilising capital through partnership,” encouraging collaboration between the public and private sectors, investors, and communities to unlock the full potential of Africa’s critical minerals for its people.

“Mobilising capital at the scale required for exploration, responsible mining, and value-addition closer to the point of production cannot be achieved by governments or the private sector operating in isolation,” he said. “It requires partnership.”

He mentioned South Africa’s Junior Mining Exploration Fund as such a partnership. From an initial allocation of R400 million, the Fund has already attracted pledges amounting to R2 billion.

Mantashe also said the continent needed partnerships to intensify geological exploration and mapping to explore geological potential.

“Such efforts are essential to alleviate the scarcity of critical minerals and to diversify the geographic sources of production,” he said.

Other speakers at the symposium pointed to the need to mobilise funds to drive the next phase of Africa’s industrialisation.

Minerals Council South Africa President Paul Dunne, CEO of Northam Platinum Holdings, identified two clear challenges in building public-private partnerships in the mining sector: Policy and mining data.

“Africa has not yet attracted its fair share of exploration investment,” he said. “We need to mitigate the risk of exploration ventures through predictable policy and taxation regimes. Our second requirement is to build a transparent cadastre free from corruption and overpegging claims disputes.”

Mantashe said investment in infrastructure, processing facilities, and industrial ecosystems was another decisive form of partnership, ensuring that more value was retained locally.

“The era of Africa competing against itself on who offers the lowest returns is not a sustainable investment strategy,” he concluded. “We have an opportunity to structure partnerships that are transparent, predictable, and mutually beneficial.”

He said that if partnerships were structured correctly, Africa’s mineral endowment would no longer be about supplying raw minerals to global markets, but would anchor industrialisation, employment and inclusive growth across the continent.

“Let this Mining Indaba be a platform where commitments are translated into projects, and partnerships into shared prosperity,” he concluded.

Investing in African Mining Indaba runs until February 12 at CTICC in Cape Town.