Trade union leaders in Africa’s mining sector have called for renewed unity and firmer control over the continent’s vast natural resources, warning of deepening exploitation in a rapidly shifting global economy.
The call came at the 3rd Executive Council Meeting of the African Federation of Miners and Mineral Wealth, held on Thursday, March 26, 2026. The gathering brought together labour leaders from across the continent to reflect on Africa’s place in an increasingly competitive and resource-driven global order.
Speaking at the meeting, Minister for Labour, Jobs and Employment, Dr Rashid Pelpuo, cautioned that Africa’s resource wealth, while a blessing, also leaves it exposed to external control and exploitation.
“Africa’s rich natural resources also expose us to exploitation,” he said. “Our greatest ally in confronting these challenges is a united front. We must strengthen solidarity among our countries, our people and our unions, and ensure that our collective voice is heard on the global stage.”
The meeting, held under the theme Strengthening Unity and Solidarity Among African Mining Unions to Confront the New Global Order and Attempts to Control Natural Resources and Rare Minerals, set the tone for discussions centred on collaboration and resistance to external pressures.
Against this backdrop, the African Federation of Miners and Mineral Wealth, established to protect mineworkers and promote equitable benefits from mineral resources, used the platform to push for coordinated continental action. Its president, Joseph Chewe, called for proactive engagement in mining policy, investment frameworks, and the localisation of beneficiation, value addition and industrialisation.
“As African Unions, we must also reposition ourselves strategically. We cannot afford to be reactive. We must engage proactively in shaping mining policies, influencing investment frameworks, and ensuring that beneficiation, value addition, and industrialisation take place on African soil.
“The future of our minerals must not be limited to extraction, but must instead include transformation, manufacturing, and job creation for our people. The federation must speak to these issues at the country level and at the continental level, as this is the purpose of the existence of this federation,” he stressed.
Adding to the call, guest speaker Kwesi Pratt Jnr, who also serves as General Secretary of the Socialist Movement of Ghana, underscored the need for African workers to be placed at the centre of all mining agreements, with guarantees for permanent employment, fair wages and safe working conditions.
“Let every mining agreement include African workers at the table,” he said. “Let every mineworker have a permanent contract, a living wage, and the right to return home safely at the end of each shift.”
Meanwhile, the General Secretary of the Ghana Mineworkers’ Union, Abdul-Moomin Gbana, emphasised that beyond rhetoric, unity must translate into tangible industrial transformation.
“The only way we can secure real benefits is through unity and by harnessing our collective potential. That is what will drive industrialisation and ultimately improve the lives of African people,” he noted.
