17. MFURAKAZI NOEL

 

Question 3.) By 2030, Young Africans are expected to make up 42% of the world’s youth and account for 75% of those under age 35 in Africa. Increasingly, there is an opportunity for the mineral resource sector to play a role in bridging the unemployment gap and repositioning itself as an employer of choice as well as a key job creator on the continent. Suggest ways through which the youth in Africa can harness the mineral resource sector to create opportunities for sustainable economic development.

 

The exploitation of the mineral resources sector by young Africans to create opportunities for sustainable economic development

The mineral resources sector remains an essential opportunity for African youth. The Transparent management and coordination of this field is a necessity for the reduction of unemployment. Young Africans can create jobs in the mineral resources sector. What are the means in order to achieve this goal and to make this possible?

The first strategy would be to develop youth education and capacity building in the mining, oil and energy sectors.

The second strategy would be to prioritize the development of local extractive industries and proceed with the creation of new local extractive industries for mineral resources.

Finally, the last strategy would be to prioritize the processing of minerals at local level.





A. Youth education in mining, geology, petroleum and energy

The mineral resource sector in Africa has long been dominated by foreign extractive industries. Due to a big number of unqualified workers in this field, this sector is until now dominated by foreign industries.

Africans need to appropriate their mining fortunes and equitably. Investment in the education sector, especially in the field of mineral resources would be a cornerstone to enable African youth to be able to exploit their own mining fortunes. Because investing in the education of young people means investing in a better future and sustainable development. This will contribute to future industrial growth and economic growth. The poor management of this sector was obviously due to the lack of knowledge and long-term projects that could contribute to sustainable development.

The education of African youth in the exploitation of natural resources and mining resources will help predict a better future for Africa, innovation and sustainable development. It would be inconceivable to build a sustainable economy without first developing the education of the youth. The education of young people in geological sciences, mining and energy would constitute a foundation, milestones for the development of the sector of extraction and processing of mineral resources that the African continent engorges.


B. The means to achieve quality education.

African states must first create cooperation links in the education sector with foreign universities or industries (European, Asian or American) with a certain specialty in the exploitation and management of mineral resources. This must be done with the aim of sending abroad young Africans and experts to acquire knowledge about the extraction and processing of mineral resources.

Finally, African states must use the technique of importing foreign knowledge and knowledge as has done Japan and thus develop the extraction of African mineral wealth by local industries and even their transformation by the same industries.




C. Prioritize the development and creation of local extractive industries


African policymakers have been satisfied with the export of natural resources. They forget that in return, they will buy at a high cost, the products processed from our mineral fortunes. Most African countries rely on their annual budgets on income from the export of mineral resources. They are often content only with extraction, and few of them consider engaging in the development or establishment of local extractive industries. They also do not imagine that at a certain point mineral resources will be depleted or disappeared. 

Changing the mentality of African states is imperative in order to appropriate their own mineral resources. African states must themselves exploit and transform their mineral resources.

One of the ways to appropriate mineral resources would be to invest in the creation of local extractive industries. This will help create jobs and reduce unemployment among African youth.

African states should not be content not only with the extraction of mineral resources, but also with the processing of minerals locally. Investing in industrialization and in the production of African mineral resources will benefit most Africans in harmony and equitably.


D. Prioritize the processing of mineral resources on site

When African states would had developed the education of young people in geological science, renewable and non-renewable energy, the appropriation of mineral resources by Africans would have been easy. 

In consequence, it will contribute to the self-creativity of employment and innovation in the mining sector. Investing at home mineral resource processing will allow long-term planning and the sale of manufactured products. They will fix the price of products manufactured freely. The transformation of minerals at home will allow young people to undertake themselves in the mineral resources sector. And why not import mining products from abroad and process them locally. Japan could serve as an example, one of the strategies to develop its industrial sector has been the importation of foreign knowledge.

In conclusion, to achieve good management of mineral resources with a view to achieving sustainable development, one of the strategies to achieve this objective would be the development of the education sector. The education of young people in geology, energy and mining would constitute a foundation and milestones for developing local industries for the extraction and processing of the mineral resources that Africa engorges.

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