Uganda and other African nations should invest in local mineral processing rather than exporting raw materials, Deputy Speaker of Parliament Thomas Tayebwa has urged. Speaking at the Organisation of African, Caribbean and Pacific States-European Union parliamentary assembly in Brussels, Belgium, Tayebwa, who is Co-President of the OACPS-EU Joint Parliamentary Assembly, argued that growing global demand for critical minerals presents an opportunity for member countries to expand industrial production, create skilled employment and strengthen their economies instead of remaining suppliers of unprocessed materials.
Tayebwa highlighted that several OACPS countries possess significant mineral resources but have yet to fully translate their mineral wealth into domestic industrial development. He cited examples including the Democratic Republic of Congo, which accounted for an estimated 73 percent of global mined cobalt production in 2015 according to the United States Geological Survey, as well as Sierra Leone, Uganda, Burundi, Malawi, Côte d'Ivoire and Nigeria. The Deputy Speaker said mineral-producing countries should prioritise establishing local processing facilities, developing technical skills and supporting domestic businesses to participate in mineral value chains.
A reported nine percent decline in global critical mineral investment in 2025 has made the challenge more urgent, Tayebwa noted, citing the International Energy Agency. He identified reliable electricity, transport infrastructure, skilled labour and access to affordable capital as essential requirements for developing competitive mineral processing industries. Tayebwa also challenged governments and international partners to ensure that mineral agreements deliver tangible benefits to host communities through employment, contracts for local businesses and revenues invested in public services.
Tayebwa said parliamentarians had a responsibility to scrutinise mineral agreements, monitor their implementation, examine public costs, protect workers' rights and the environment, and ensure transparent management of mineral revenues. He pointed to the Africa-EU Working Group and the OACPS-EU Working Group on Critical Raw Materials as platforms through which legislators could sustain engagement and monitor commitments. Tororo Municipality MP Shyam J. Tanna reinforced the message, challenging European Union partners to support Africa's ambition to add value to its mineral resources. Tanna noted that the EU Critical Raw Materials Act sets a 2030 benchmark for the European Union to develop processing capacity capable of meeting at least 40 percent of its annual consumption of strategic raw materials, and targets at least 25 percent of annual consumption through recycling.
Tanna raised concerns about Europe's growing emphasis on recycling raw materials, questioning whether this could create competing interests with African countries seeking to establish their own mineral processing industries. He called for fair partnerships and affordable financing to enable African countries to invest in processing facilities, develop domestic industries, create employment and retain a greater share of the value generated from their natural resources. "We sleep on diamonds but wake up in poverty," Tanna remarked, highlighting the contrast between Africa's vast mineral wealth and the limited economic benefits many countries derive from it.