Millions of Africans don’t have electricity but renewable energy offers an opportunity.
The ambitious endeavour to bring electricity to 300 million Africans by 2030, Mission 300, is a bold declaration that Africa refuses to remain in the dark — literally and metaphorically. It signals a continent on the cusp of an energy revolution, poised to leapfrog into a sustainable future.
But beneath this grand ambition lies an all-too-familiar dilemma: will Africa harness its wealth of energy transition minerals to power its own development, or will it once again play the role of a mere quarry, feeding the insatiable hunger of industrialised economies?
The global narrative around energy transition minerals, cobalt, lithium, copper and other rare earth elements, frames Africa as a sleeping giant, poised to capitalise on the world’s shift to clean energy. The African Development Bank (AfDB), never short of innovative financial instruments, has proposed a novel “African Units of Account” (AUA), a non-circulating currency backed by these very minerals. The AUA aims to attract green investments while shielding African economies from the risks associated with currency volatility.
At first glance, this appears like a masterstroke — Africa, finally setting its own terms. But scratch beneath the surface, and troubling patterns begin to emerge.
Who, for instance, will truly benefit from this mineral-backed prosperity? If history is any guide, Africa’s mineral wealth has rarely translated into widespread economic benefits. Instead, it has fuelled corruption, environmental destruction and neocolonial exploitation.
Without robust governance and strong institutional frameworks, the AUA risks becoming another financial mirage — brilliant in theory, disastrous in execution.
And let’s not overlook the uncomfortable irony: the AfDB’s pitch for the AUA rests on the claim that a basket of critical minerals will hold its value “better than any African currency”. This is a sobering admission, if there ever was one. It’s like a chef admitting their restaurant’s food isn’t worth eating.
If African currencies are so weak that a pile of rocks offers more stability, perhaps the conversation should start with fixing the continent’s financial systems before betting its future on the whims of commodity markets.
Then comes the question of agency. Who will manage these mineral reserves, set their value and decide how they’re traded? If past resource deals are any indication, the decision-making will not rest in the hands of African communities, but rather in boardrooms in Geneva, Beijing and Washington.
Therein lies a serious problem. If Africa simply exports raw minerals without prioritising local processing, manufacturing and industrialisation, it will be stuck in a familiar trap, rich in resources, but poor in prosperity.
Mission 300, therefore, must be more than an electrification project; it must be the launchpad for a greater economic transformation. Africa must resist the temptation to play the role of resource supplier in a new green rush and instead position itself as a global leader in sustainable energy production and innovation.
This means investing in infrastructure that adds value to these minerals locally, developing an industrial base that creates jobs beyond mining, and ensuring that communities benefit from — not bear the brunt of — extraction projects.
The continent has a unique opportunity to chart a different course. Instead of repeating the “extractive playbook” that has left it dependent on commodity exports, Africa can use Mission 300 to drive investments in renewable energy technology, promote decentralised energy systems and foster a circular economy where resources are used efficiently, and waste is minimised.
For a continent that remains energy poor and acutely underdeveloped, this is not just an economic imperative; it is a moral one. The world cannot continue to champion a green transition built on the back of African communities suffering environmental destruction and exploitation.
Ultimately the success of Mission 300 will not be measured solely by the number of megawatts added to the grid, but by the kind of economy it helps build. Will Africa be a mere supplier of the raw materials that fuel the clean energy revolution elsewhere, or will it be an architect of its own future — designing, manufacturing and profiting from the very technologies that will power the next century?
If Africa plays its cards right, it won’t just be keeping the lights on — it will be illuminating a path for the rest of the world. But if it falls into old patterns, well, at least we’ll have a new currency backed by minerals that foreign investors can speculate on while Africans wait for a prosperity that never arrives. And that, as history has shown, is a trade Africa simply cannot afford to make — again.
Dean Bhekumuzi Bhebhe is a senior just transitions and campaigns adviser at Power Shift Africa.
