Name: Mining Indaba
Start: 2026-02-09T10:30:00+02:00
End: 2026-02-12T15:30:00+02:00
Location: CTICC

Ambassador (Ret.) J. Peter Pham

Chairman Ivanhoe Atlantic

J. Peter Pham served as the United States Special Envoy for the Great Lakes (2018-2020) and Sahel (2020-2021) Regions of Africa, with the personal rank of US Ambassador granted by President Donald J. Trump. Since September 2023, he has been Chairman of Ivanhoe Atlantic, an American company developing US-aligned critical and strategic mineral projects to power America’s future, including the ultra-high grade Kon Kweni iron ore project in Guinea. He is also a Distinguished Fellow at the Atlantic Council, a Senior Advisor at the Krach Institute for Tech Diplomacy at Purdue University, and a Ben Franklin Fellow. Pham was previously Vice President for Research and Regional Initiatives at the Atlantic Council as well as Director of the Council’s Africa Centre. Earlier in his career, he was a tenured professor of justice studies, political science, and Africana studies at James Madison University, where he was director of the Nelson Institute for International and Public Affairs. From 2008-2017, he was concurrently Vice President of the Association for the Study of the Middle East and Africa (ASMEA) and Editor-in-Chief of ASMEA’s peer-reviewed quarterly Journal of the Middle East and Africa. He is the author of several books and more than 350 articles, essays and reviews on African politics, security, and economic issues. He currently also serves as a Non-Executive Director of Africell Global Holdings and of Rainbow Rare Earths as well as a strategic advisor to several other companies, with a particular focus on managing geopolitical risk and developing business in Africa. Pham is the recipient of numerous state honours and awards from African countries in recognition of contributions made over the course of his career to strengthening relations between the United States and Africa. In 2022, he was elected a member of the American Academy of Diplomacy.

2026 Agenda Sessions

Who will benefit from the geopolitical scramble for critical minerals in Africa?

Foreign powers including the US, Europe, China, and Middle Eastern players are racing to secure access to critical mineral supplies in Africa to safeguard the development of their own strategic industries - clean energy, defence, IT, etc. But will this process support the critical needs of African countries and communities for sustainable and just development – or will it end up entrenching the global and local inequalities and injustices of the past?

Tuesday 10 February 11:00 - 11:45 Ngorongoro Crater Stage (CTICC1 - Level 2)

Add to calendar 02/10/2026 11:00 02/10/2026 11:45 Who will benefit from the geopolitical scramble for critical minerals in Africa?

Ngorongoro Crater Stage (CTICC1 - Level 2) Africa/Johannesburg

Will Africa ever create the infrastructure to realise its critical minerals value addition dream

Africa’s vast reserves of critical minerals position the continent as a key player in the global energy transition, yet it continues to struggle with the infrastructure needed to unlock full value. With infrastructural challenges including transport, energy and access to water, does Africa have a chance of realising its value addition dreams with the current infrastructural climate, and how can the power of partnerships help close the gap?

Wednesday 11 February 11:20 - 12:05 Ngorongoro Crater Stage (CTICC1 - Level 2)