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Announced in September 2026, the initiative comes as critical mineral investment and value addition take center stage at African Mining Week (AMW) 2026, taking place October 14–16 in Cape Town. Under the theme Mining the Future: Unearthing Africa’s Full Mineral Value, AMW 2026 will connect African governments and project developers with investors and technical partners seeking opportunities across mineral production, processing and supporting infrastructure.

The UN mechanism will provide tailored support for countries as they seek to translate mineral resources into broader economic development, prioritizing areas such as policy advice, legal and regulatory expertise, environmental and social safeguards, and greater coordination across domestic mineral value chains.

The program comes as participating countries increasingly pursue domestic processing and industrialization strategies. Zambia is seeking to capture greater value from its copper industry, while Zimbabwe is expanding lithium processing. Madagascar is advancing efforts to expand value addition around rare earths and graphite, while Guinea and Nigeria are seeking to develop broader mineral value chains.

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The program adds to a growing portfolio of African mining projects receiving UN and international financial, technical and institutional support, reflecting the continent’s increasing role in shaping global supply chains.

In June 2026, the UN Economic Commission for Africa launched a five-year regional program aimed at strengthening environmentally and socially responsible critical mineral value chains across the Southern African Development Community (SADC).

The initiative is being implemented in the DRC, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, Zambia and Zimbabwe and focuses on increasing local value retention while supporting industrialization and responsible mineral development.

Led by the UN Economic Commission for Africa through the African Minerals Development Centre and supported by Germany’s International Climate Initiative, the program brings together technical and development partners to address constraints including limited beneficiation capacity, ESG compliance and weak regional value-chain integration.

The UN Development Program (UNDP) is also developing a continental flagship initiative on Africa’s critical minerals under its 2026-2029 Regional Program for Africa. The initiative focuses on how mineral-producing countries can use their resource base to support economic transformation while making investment and value-addition strategies appropriate to their individual infrastructure, financing and industrial capabilities.

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Technology-led mining development is also receiving support. Through the UNDP MineTech Accelerator, five African mining innovators – Anchor Machines in Uganda, Zanfi Enterprise in Zambia, Milsat Technologies in Nigeria, Tukutech in Tanzania and SYNCHROS in the Democratic Republic of Congo – are receiving seed funding to accelerate technology-driven mining solutions.

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Together, these initiatives reflect a broader shift toward developing domestic value chains across Africa’s mining sector. For African producers, expanding international partnerships unlock capital, technical expertise and local processing capacity. For global investors, Africa’s rich resource base offers access to essential critical minerals while helping diversify supply chains for energy technologies and manufacturing.

These developments will form part of the wider critical mineral discussion taking place at AMW 2026. For more information, visit www.African-MiningWeek.com

Taking place in Caracas from 22–25 February 2027, VEW comes at a significant point for bp’s activities in the country. In April 2026, the company signed a memorandum of understanding with the Venezuelan Government covering the development of the Cocuina-Manakin gas field, which straddles the maritime border between Venezuela and Trinidad and Tobago, while also opening discussions around opportunities in the offshore Loran gas field and other exploration areas.

The agreement marked bp’s renewed entry into Venezuela and builds on the company’s long-standing presence in neighboring Trinidad and Tobago. bp operates the Manakin portion of the cross-border field, while the Venezuelan Cocuina section forms part of the country’s undeveloped Deltana Platform. The company has said it is pursuing development of the field with the potential to bring more than 1 trillion cubic feet (tcf) of natural gas into Trinidad for LNG production.

Momentum around the project continued through 2026. In August, Trinidad and Tobago’s National Gas Company (NGC) agreed to acquire a 20% participating interest in the Manakin portion of the field from bp, strengthening the cross-border commercial structure around the development. bp and NGC have also agreed to market 70% of the project’s gas to Atlantic LNG, where bp holds a 45% stake alongside Shell, with the remaining gas intended for petrochemical use. A final investment decision is expected by the end of 2026.

The developments place bp at the intersection of Venezuela’s emerging offshore gas opportunity and Trinidad and Tobago’s efforts to strengthen gas supply for its LNG and petrochemical industries. They also demonstrate how Venezuela’s offshore resources could increasingly connect into established regional energy infrastructure and markets.

bp’s interest extends beyond Cocuina-Manakin. Its April 2026 agreement also covered exploration opportunities in the Loran gas field, estimated at around 7 tcf, alongside potential collaboration on gas commercialization. In June, Venezuela signed agreements with Shell to advance Phase I of Loran, while bp was identified as a prospective participant in both Loran and the neighboring Cocuina-Manakin project.

For Venezuela, the activity comes amid a broader reopening of the sector to international energy companies and renewed efforts to develop offshore gas resources, attract capital and technical expertise, and establish new routes to market. VEW 2027 will bring together government representatives, PDVSA, international operators, investors, service companies and technology providers to examine these opportunities across the value chain.

As a Gold Sponsor, bp will have a platform at the event to engage with stakeholders shaping Venezuela’s next phase of energy development and share its perspective on offshore gas, cross-border projects, gas commercialization and regional energy security.

With Cocuina-Manakin progressing and Loran emerging as another major offshore opportunity, bp’s participation will bring its experience in developing cross-border gas resources and connecting them to regional markets into discussions at VEW 2027.

VEW is Organized by Energy Capital & Power and taking place under the patronage of Acting President Delcy Rodriguez, PDVSA and the Ministry of Hydrocarbons.

The attraction of hydrogen is its potential role in Africa’s energy transition, industrial development and decarbonisation. Turning that potential into viable projects, however, requires deeper research and understanding of the limitations and potential solutions.

Energy supply, water availability, infrastructure, storage, project economics and access to capital all influence where hydrogen projects can be developed and how successfully they can operate.

These interconnected challenges feature in the Hydrogen Industry Insights Volume, published by ESI Africa, part of VUKA Group, bringing together analysis and industry perspectives on the emerging hydrogen value chain.

Explore Hydrogen Industry Insights Volume (https://apo-opa.co/4hlrxda)
Hydrogen and water cannot be separated

Water is fundamental to green hydrogen production, making the relationship between future hydrogen development and water security immensely important.

ESI Africa’s webinar, titled the hydrogen-water connection, examines this intersection and the considerations stakeholders need to understand as hydrogen projects develop alongside competing demands for water resources. Watch on-demand (https://apo-opa.co/4hT2Jta)

The issue will remain firmly on the industry agenda at Enlit Africa and Water Security Africa, taking place at the CTICC in Cape Town from 11 to 13 May 2027. Together, the co-located platforms bring energy and water stakeholders into a shared environment focused on infrastructure, resilience, technology and investment.

Explore Enlit Africa 2027 (https://apo-opa.co/3V8fMOK)

From hydrogen opportunity to investable infrastructure

For Africa’s hydrogen ambitions to translate into projects, the technology and resource potential must be matched with viable business models, project preparation and capital.

The Project & Investment Network, in partnership with the African Infrastructure Elites: Projects and People annual magazine, connects African energy and water projects with investors, financiers, developers and offtakers, creating a route for projects to move from opportunity towards investment and implementation.

Explore the Project & Investment Network (https://apo-opa.co/4heKMFi)

Recognising infrastructure leadership across Africa

Projects already demonstrating innovation and leadership across energy, water, transport and wider infrastructure also have an opportunity to gain industry recognition through the African Infrastructure Elites: Projects and People annual magazine.

Hosted by ESI Africa, the African Infrastructure Elites recognises projects, partnerships and individuals contributing to infrastructure development across the continent.

Nominations are open, giving organisations an opportunity to put forward projects and leaders helping turn Africa’s infrastructure ambitions into tangible outcomes.

Explore the African Infrastructure Elites and submit a nomination (https://apo-opa.co/4xODCwo)

Storage remains part of the next energy conversation

Hydrogen forms part of a broader discussion around how energy can be produced, stored and deployed more effectively as power systems evolve.

ESI Africa’s forthcoming Energy & Storage Industry Insights Volume 2026 explores the projects, technologies, investment considerations and market developments shaping energy and storage across the sector.

Join the Energy & Storage Industry Insights Volume 2026 waiting list (https://apo-opa.co/3VkwJ8D)