By Stella Odueme
Africa must strengthen its influence in global metals pricing and ensure that mineral-producing countries play a more active role in determining the value of their resources, the Executive Director of Women in Mining Africa (WiM-Africa), Dr Comfort Asokoro-Ogaji, has said.
Asokoro-Ogaji made the call while presenting an African perspective at the Shanghai Metals Expo 2026 during a roundtable discussion on “Eastern Pricing 2.0: Integrating Futures, Physical Markets, Industry and Finance for the Next Stage of Global Metals Pricing.”
She said that despite Africa's vast deposits of strategic minerals, including copper, cobalt, lithium, manganese, gold and platinum-group metals, the continent continued to have limited influence over the systems and institutions responsible for determining their market value.
According to her, mineral wealth does not automatically translate into pricing power, noting that many African producers remain disadvantaged by inadequate market information, limited processing capacity, restricted access to finance and weak commercial networks.
She stressed that Africa must move beyond being a passive supplier of raw materials and develop the institutional, financial and industrial capabilities required to negotiate better terms in international mineral markets.
The WiM-Africa executive director identified five priority areas for improving the continent's competitiveness in the global minerals economy.
These include strengthening mineral market intelligence, investing in mineral testing and standardisation, expanding local beneficiation and processing, improving access to commodity markets and trade finance, and promoting inclusive participation in the mining value chain.
She explained that reliable information on mineral production, quality, prices, buyers and processing capacity would enable African producers to negotiate from stronger positions.
She also emphasised the importance of independent laboratory testing, certification and traceability, arguing that producers must understand the quality and value of their minerals before entering commercial negotiations.
On beneficiation, Asokoro-Ogaji called for stronger regional cooperation to develop processing facilities and industrial value chains that would allow African countries to move beyond exporting predominantly unprocessed minerals.
She further advocated improved connections between African producers, international commodity markets and financial institutions to facilitate access to working capital, trade finance, secure payment systems and credible offtake agreements.
Addressing gender inclusion in the mining sector, she said women must be actively involved in value creation rather than being restricted to mineral extraction and other low-value activities.
She noted that women across Africa participate in mining, mineral trading, processing, cooperatives and related services but continue to face challenges accessing finance, equipment, technical expertise, market information and formal supply chains.
She questioned whether women-led mining enterprises could access reliable laboratory services, transparent international price information, processing technology, financing and legitimate buyers within the emerging global metals market.
According to her, addressing these challenges is not merely about gender representation but also about expanding economic participation, improving competitiveness and strengthening the mining industry.
Asokoro-Ogaji reaffirmed WiM-Africa's strategic partnership with Shanghai Metals Market, saying the organisation was seeking practical opportunities to connect African women-led enterprises with market intelligence, industrial networks, research institutions, technology and commercial opportunities.
She also called for stronger cooperation between African resource-producing countries and China's industrial, financial and trading institutions, particularly in mineral-market intelligence, laboratory development, processing technology, professional training, responsible sourcing and investment readiness.
While acknowledging China's industrial expertise, processing capacity and access to major metals markets, she said partnerships with Africa should extend beyond the purchase of raw minerals.
She clarified that Africa was not seeking to replace established international pricing benchmarks with arbitrary national prices but wanted to develop the capacity to understand those benchmarks, negotiate better deals and participate more directly in the markets that determine mineral values.
She maintained that the future of global metals pricing should provide opportunities for more transparent, internationally connected and inclusive mineral markets.
“Having minerals is not the same as having pricing power. And mineral wealth alone does not guarantee industrial prosperity,” she said.
She added that Africa's priority should be to translate its mineral resources into stronger institutions, competitive businesses, industrial development and sustainable economic opportunities.
“Africa has mineral power. It is time we built the market power to match it,” she said.
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