Reuters published on 28 July 2026 an article titled "US Backs Madagascar Rare Earths Project in Push to Loosen China's Supply Chain Grip."
The US International Development Finance Corporation agreed to commit up to $4.84 million for pilot plant work, laboratory testing, and environmental programs of a $150 million rare earths project in Madagascar. The deal highlights Washington's effort to develop alternative sources of minerals controlled by China.
The Atlantic Council published on 16 July 2026 a report titled "Artificial Intelligence and the Future of African Mining" by Anthony Carroll and Jef Karel Caers.
Colonial-era maps and infrastructure hinder access to the roughly 30 percent of global critical minerals in Africa. AI-powered mining and mapping tools could help expedite discovery, reduce drilling time, and modernize operations.
The United States should develop "smart mining" partnerships with African countries that advance US security objectives while providing long-term dividends for African nations.
Pan African Television posted on 8 July 2026 an article titled "Namibia's President Visits China for Talks on Minerals, Green Hydrogen, and Manufacturing" by Victoria Wilson.
Namibian President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah is on a state visit to China. Her priority is attracting investment in minerals processing and downstream manufacturing. Namibia aims to process 57 percent of its exported minerals locally by 2030.
China-Africa Security Radar published on 5 July 2026 a commentary titled "China, the United States, and Africa's Green Minerals Vision" by Paa Kwesi Wolseley Prah.
In 2025, the African Union adopted a continental policy framework called Africa Green Minerals Strategy (AGMS), which aims to turn Africa's critical and green minerals endowment into sustainable, value-adding industrialization that supports a just energy transition and regional supply chain integration.
China has the processing capacity, investment scale, implementation speed, and institutional flexibility to advance African industrialization--but its commercial incentives run directly against allowing Africa to independently climb the value chain.
The US offers somewhat more transparent financing structures, stronger governance standards, and procedural models that on paper seem to better protect African states from debt traps--but it lacks the industrial ecosystem and the genuine political will to support African manufacturing rather than African extraction for American consumption.
Fox News published on 23 June 2026 an article titled "Trump Gets Major Win against China in African Rare Earth Minerals Race" by Paul Tilsley.
The United States has supported an American company, Virtus Minerals, in developing two major mines producing cobalt and copper in the Democratic Republic of Congo. This is the Trump administration's first critical minerals (not rare earths as the article asserts) win in the DRC.
Reuters published on 17 June 2026 an article titled "Kenya, US Close in on Critical Minerals Deal, Ruto Says" by John Irish.
Kenya and the United States are about to close a deal on critical minerals that would allow Kenya to process the minerals domestically, a demand that African countries are increasingly making in their negotiations with buyers. This is also an effort by the Trump administration to compete with China for African critical minerals.
Rare Earth Exchanges published on 17 May 2026 an article titled "Africa Has Become the New Geopolitical Battleground for Critical Minerals."
The article summarizes a study that examines trade flows, foreign direct investment, military relationships, diplomatic agreements, mining policy, and strategic industrial initiatives shaping Africa's critical minerals economy. It evaluates how China, Russia, the United States, and Europe are accessing and responding to Africa's critical mineral wealth.
The entire study "In the Crosshairs: Twenty-first-century Rivalry for Africa's Critical Minerals" by Ron Matthews and Vlado Vivoda was published online on 11 May 2026 by the European Journal of International Security.
The South China Morning Post published on 25 April 2026 an article titled "China and Mozambique to Map Critical Minerals in Insurgency-Hit Cabo Delgado" by Jevans Nyabiage.
During a state visit to China, Mozambique's President Daniel Chapo signed a wide-ranging joint communique dealing with cooperation on critical minerals, natural gas, and rare earths. China also agreed to provide more support, not spelled out, for combatting an insurgency in Mozambique's Cabo Delgado region.
The Washington Post published on 28 March 2026 an editorial titled "Yet Another Step Toward State Capitalism."
The US International Development Finance Corporation has taken a 20 percent stake in a graphite mine in Mozambique to counter China's control of the world's supply of graphite. This is a tactic the Trump administration has used in other deals to control critical minerals. The editorial asks if this is the best use of taxpayer funding when they will be left holding the bag if the company fails.
Skillings Mining Review published on 3 March 2026 an article titled "The Indaba 2026 Legacy: Inside the New African Critical Minerals Framework" by Charles Pitts.
The most recent Cape Town conference on mining (Indaba 2026) demonstrated that three major African sources of critical minerals (DRC, Zambia, and South Africa) acted in a coordinated way to ensure that its raw mineral wealth is not just exported but more of it is refined in Africa for value added benefits. For example, the DRC produces about 70 percent of the world's cobalt but now refines less than 10 percent of it. The DRC intends to change that ratio.
The West's Lobito Corridor project for Angola, Zambia, and the DRC fits this new African narrative reasonably well, China's focus on importing raw material not so much.
The Telegraph published on 12 February 2026 an article titled "'Mine, Baby Mine': Trump Races to Catch Up to China in New Scramble for Africa's Minerals" by Ben Farmer.
Washington is trying to overturn more than 20 years of Chinese dominance in which Beijing has taken control of mining and refining of critical minerals. This competition is playing out this week at a major mining meeting in South Africa.
The Lagos-based African Finance Corporation recently posted its "Compendium of Africa's Strategic Minerals 2026."
This is a major study of Africa's critical minerals, industrial minerals, uranium, and rare earths. It also noted that China controls about 90 percent of global manganese refining, approximately 90 percent of rare earth separation and refining, and dominates battery-grade graphite processing.
The Africa Center for Strategic Studies published on 9 December 2025 a paper titled "China's Critical Minerals Strategy in Africa" by Paul Nantulya.
China controls over half of global critical minerals production and an estimated 87 percent of its processing and refining capacity. It also produces nearly 70 percent of rare earth minerals.
China's strategy for dominance in critical minerals includes a tolerance for high-risk projects, generous government support to Chinese companies, diversified access to minerals, financial support of African infrastructure linked to mineral extraction, financing the development of African mineral projects, and strategic stockpiling of critical minerals in China.
Fox News posted on 26 October 2025 an article titled "Trump Administration Works to Break China's Rare Earth Stranglehold on Africa" by Paul Tilsley.
Tanzania, Angola, Malawi, and South Africa expect to open rare earth mines by 2029. The United States now imports 70 percent of its rare earth elements from China but hopes to secure new sources in Africa.
If you can't access the article in the above link, try doing so here.
Courthouse News Service published on 9 October 2025 an article titled "EU Woos Mineral-rich Africa as China Tightens Resource Grip" by Yuval Molina Obedman.
The European Union pledged $440 Billion through 2027 in infrastructure investment in Africa as it competes for influence with China. The EU program emphasizes private sector investment and blended finance using grants, loans, and guarantees.
The Conversation published on 12 October 2025 a commentary titled "China and the US Are in a Race for Critical Minerals. African Countries Need to Make the Rules" by James Boafo, Rochelle Spencer, and Senyo Dotsey.
Africa holds about 30 percent of the world's critical minerals sought by the United States and China. The analysis urges African countries to determine for themselves how to benefit from this global competition.
The Stimson Center published on 28 February 2025 an analysis titled "Competing for Africa's Resources: How the US and China Invest in Critical Minerals" by Sydney Tucker.
China's approach to Africa's critical minerals is characterized by state-backed investments and a focus on securing long-term access to resources. The US prioritizes private sector involvement and supply chain diversification to reduce reliance on China while pursuing clean energy, national security, and economic goals.
The Atlantic Council published on 26 November 2024 a commentary titled "The US Won't Gain a Lead in the Competition for Africa's Critical Minerals Without Innovation" by Chris Moorman.
In order to compete successfully with China for Africa's critical minerals, it needs to form partnerships with African countries that are economically feasible, environmentally sustainable, and ethical. The only way to do that is by driving innovation along the critical minerals supply chain, specifically in processing and refining.
The Carnegie Endowment for International Peace published on 15 August 2024 an analysis titled "Maximizing the Benefits of the Renewed Global Interest in Africa's Strategic Minerals" by Folashade Soule.
China is far ahead in building supply chains for Africa's cobalt, rare earth minerals, lithium, and several other metals and minerals. Chinese companies are willing to take greater risks than their Western counterparts and adapt quickly to low environmental standards.
Tanzania's The Guardian published on 29 July 2024 an article titled "Chinese Firm to Invest $63m on Tanzania's Mining Project."
Chinese mining company Shenghe Resources has signed a non-binding term sheet with Tanzania's Peak Rare Earths to develop a rare earth operation.
