After intensive topical research and collaborative revision, the mining industry network of EnergieAgentur.NRW (EA), Düsseldorf/Germany, and the German Mineral Resources Agency (DERA), Berlin/Germany, part of the Federal Institute for Geoscien-ces and Raw Materials (BGR), published a joint study on the raw materials situation and current developments in the raw material sectors of 31 countries in Sub-Saharan Africa (Figure 1).
Germany is highly dependent not just on the export of goods but also on raw material imports. Over 50 countries worldwide are designated mining countries, where mining products make up more than 6 % of overall exports and are therefore of major national importance. Over 90 % of mining countries are developing countries, and most of these are located in Africa. According to UN data, 29 of the countries with the highest birth rates are also located in the Sub-Saharan region alone.
Demand for mineral resources and energy raw materials is set to double globally by 2050 if the trend of the previous three years continues. As the study demonstrates, the African continent offers enormous potential for energy raw materials, metals and industrial minerals. Against this background, mining in Africa will play a key role in the necessary development and ascent of the African economy.
This study, which can be downloaded for free from the homepages of both organisations, is intended to provide basic information with its preliminary remarks and a snapshot of the situation based on individual country data in order to provide an up-to-date, compact overview. (EA/Si.)
