JOHANNESBURG, South Africa, April 20, 2026/APO Group/ –While the world debates a path towards reducing carbon emissions and addressing the climate crisis, Africa continues to face one of its most consequential challenges yet: energy poverty. Across the continent, more than 600 million people lack access to electricity, while over 900 million live without clean cooking solutions. This is not a marginal issue – it is a systemic constraint on industrialization, healthcare delivery, education and economic growth. Compounding this challenge is a massive financing gap: Africa requires approximately $190 billion annually to meet its energy and climate goals, yet current investment flows fall far short.

 

This very issue becomes even more clear as the African Energy Chamber (AEC) formally submits its application to be admitted as amicus curiae in a landmark advisory proceeding before the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights. At stake is not only climate jurisprudence, but the fundamental question of how Africa balances decarbonization with development in a region where energy poverty remains the most pressing challenge.

The Structural Challenge: Energy Poverty and Financing Gaps

Africa’s energy crisis is defined not by emissions but by access. Despite being resource-rich, investment and infrastructure gaps have impacted Africa’s quest for universal access. A reliance on imports has left fuel subject to global volatility while uneven electricity access – particularly in rural and per-urban areas where grid expansion has lagged population growth – continues to impact livelihoods.

At the same time, global climate finance commitments have failed to translate into meaningful capital deployment. While developed economies have pledged hundreds of billions in climate funding, Africa receives only around $30 billion annually of the estimated $300 billion required. Even when funding is announced, disbursement timelines are slow, bureaucratic and often misaligned with the continent’s immediate development needs. This disconnect has left African countries navigating a dual challenge: addressing energy poverty while adhering to increasingly stringent global climate expectations.

Oil and Gas: A Catalyst for Growth

With over 125 billion barrels of proven crude reserves and 620 trillion cubic feet of proven gas, Africa’s hydrocarbons could make energy poverty a challenge of the past. Countries across the continent are already advancing this agenda. Nigeria targets 2 million bpd in oil production, Angola is bringing large-scale projects online, while Libya eyes 1.6 million bpd by 2027 and 2 million bpd by 2030.

Senegal is ramping up Sangomar and Greater Tortue Ahmeyim output to full capacity while Namibia eyes first oil production by 2030. Mozambique continues to advance its LNG ambitions with three major projects underway, while major hubs such as Equatorial Guinea are accelerating field development, showcasing the continued upside of Africa’s upstream sector.

“Africa cannot industrialize in the dark. Energy poverty is the greatest injustice facing our continent today, and the responsible development of our oil and gas resources is not a contradiction to climate goals – it is the pathway to achieving them,” states NJ Ayuk, Executive Chairman, AEC.

Why a Unified Voice Matters

The case before the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights represents a pivotal moment. Initiated by the Pan African Lawyers Union, the case seeks to clarify the legal obligations of African states in addressing climate change under regional human rights frameworks. Key clarifications include state obligations to addressing climate impacts and accountability in energy policy. While the case will not directly result in a ban on oil and gas development, it raises concerns around investment implications, potentially impacting spending decisions at a time when Africa needs its oil and gas resources most.

Further, its outcome could shape how international climate obligations are interpreted in the African context. By investigating climate obligations from a western standpoint, the case excludes the realities faced by African countries. Responsible for less than 3% of global greenhouse gas emissions, Africa could face the same consequences as nations that, in theory, should be held responsible.

By seeking amicus curiae status, the AEC is positioning itself to advocate for a development-first approach – one that recognizes Africa’s right to utilize its natural resources to eradicate energy poverty. The intervention reflects growing momentum among African stakeholders to assert a unified voice in global energy and climate discussions. But this is just the first step. To ensure Africa’s position is at the forefront of this case, stakeholders, governments and countries are urged to step forward and submit their own applications.

The message is clear. Africa’s climate challenge is not defined by emissions, but by access. Addressing this requires coordinated policy, accelerated investment and a unified continental strategy that places energy poverty at the center of the agenda.

JOHANNESBURG, South Africa, April 10, 2026/APO Group/ –The African private sector is raising the alarm over Frontier Energy Network’s policies that systematically exclude African professionals and service providers from meaningful roles in major energy forums. Such exclusionary practices threaten decades of progress in African energy development, including local capacity building, knowledge transfer and economic participation.

Frontier’s approach, framed as a global platform for Africa, is in practice a system that extracts value from the continent while denying Africans the opportunities to lead, participate and benefit. Marginalizing the very people who build, operate and sustain energy projects is not partnership – it is structural exclusion masquerading as opportunity.

African businesses – particularly in Nigeria and Senegal, which drive regional growth – must reassess their participation in platforms that perpetuate these policies. African capital, sponsorship and attendance cannot continue to legitimize forums where local stakeholders are systematically sidelined. Market access must be earned and mutually respected.

Mozambique and Ghana have already set a precedent. In March 2026, Mozambique’s oil and gas industry withdrew from the Africa Energies Summit in London, citing repeated failures by the organizers to improve diversity, transparency and inclusion of Black professionals in leadership, contracting and deal-making roles. In early April 2026, the Ghana Energy Chamber followed suit, formally pulling out of the same summit over discriminatory hiring practices that sidelined African professionals, executives and service providers. These coordinated actions send a clear message: Africa will no longer support platforms that deny its talent the right to lead, contribute and benefit.

The gold standard for companies to thrive in Africa is robust collaboration with international partners while building local capacity – exemplified by Senegal-based energy services company Alliance Energy. Alliance has advanced African expertise in the sector, notably supporting the launch of the National Institute for Petroleum and Gas in Senegal to train young professionals for leadership roles, while backing diverse energy initiatives across power, solar, gas and wind that strengthen Senegal’s position as a regional energy hub.

This success demonstrates that African companies flourish when local talent, leadership, contracting and workforce development are central to execution, alongside strategic partnerships with the US, UK and Europe. Any entity attempting to operate in Africa without a commitment to hiring or contracting local professionals threatens not only the ecosystem that nurtured companies like Alliance Energy but also the continent’s broader ambition to grow regional capability, ownership and sustainable energy development.

“The message is simple,” says Dr. Ndjuga Dieng, Managing Director of Alliance Energy. “Africa will no longer sit quietly while its talent is excluded from opportunities on its own continent. Nigeria, Senegal and all African nations must follow the lead of Ghana and Mozambique by standing against platforms that discriminate. Protect your people, your companies and your energy future. Inclusion is not optional – it is the foundation of growth.”

African energy markets have historically thrived on collaboration, both within the continent and with international partners. Events such as the Offshore Technology Conference (OTC) and the Invest in African Energy (IAE) Forum exemplify this model, integrating African executives, policymakers and service providers into core programming, deal-making and knowledge transfer.

African stakeholders must prioritize platforms that respect local content, equitable hiring and fair contracting. Strategic withdrawal from exclusionary events is not isolationism – it is a stand for principle, economic logic, and the future of Africa’s energy sector. The continent defines its own trajectory and will engage only with partners that recognize African talent as integral, not optional, to the industry’s future.

The position advanced by Alliance Energy aligns with broader advocacy across the continent, including that of the African Energy Chamber, which has consistently called for stronger local content policies, fair contracting practices and greater inclusion of African professionals across the energy value chain. This alignment underscores a growing consensus among African private sector leaders that sustainable industry growth depends on meaningful participation by local companies and talent, not their exclusion.

CAPE TOWN, South Africa, April 9, 2026/APO Group/ –Rising demand for lithium is positioning Africa to attract foreign investment, accelerate local beneficiation and strengthen its role in securing the global battery supply chain. A recent forecast by Wood Mackenzie projects that global lithium demand could exceed 13 million tons by 2050 under an accelerated energy transition scenario. This surge is expected to place significant pressure on supply, with deficits emerging as early as 2028. Without substantial new investments, existing lithium projects will struggle to meet demand beyond the mid-2030s.

 

Against this backdrop, Africa’s growing pipeline of greenfield and development-stage lithium projects positions the continent as an increasingly important contributor to global supply security. In 2025, Africa ranked as the largest source of new lithium supply globally, with new output from the region exceeding that of the rest of the world combined. This milestone underscores the continent’s potential to scale production and strengthen its role in the global battery minerals market.

Emerging Lithium Producers Strengthen Africa’s Supply Pipeline

Even under a slower energy transition scenario, Wood Mackenzie projects that lithium markets will remain adequately supplied until 2037, before entering deficit. This outlook reinforces Africa’s strategic role as new projects across Mali, Zimbabwe, Ghana and Namibia advance toward production.

In the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Zijin Mining, AVZ Minerals and KoBold Metals are expected to begin operations at the Manono lithium project in mid-to-late 2026, marking the country’s first lithium output. Ranked among the world’s largest hard-rock lithium deposits, Manono is expected to begin exports shortly after commissioning, diversifying DRC’s mineral output while strengthening the continent`s contribution to the global electric vehicles and battery supply chain.

Mali Emerges as a Regional Lithium Hub

Mali is also rapidly positioning itself as a key lithium producer. The Bougouni Lithium Project, commissioned in 2025, currently produces approximately 125,000 tons per annum of concentrate, with Phase Two expansion plans underway that could nearly double production capacity.

Meanwhile, the Goulamina Lithium Project, one of the largest spodumene deposits globally, is producing around 506,000 tons of spodumene concentrate annually, with expansion plans targeting one million tons per year. Together, these projects are expected to significantly strengthen Mali and Africa’s position within the global lithium market.

Ghana and Zimbabwe Expand Lithium Production and Value Addition

In Ghana, the Ewoyaa Lithium Project, developed by Atlantic Lithium, is set to become the country’s first lithium-producing mine, with production targeted for late 2027. The project is expected to produce 3.58 million tons of spodumene concentrate grading 6% and 5.5%, alongside approximately 4.7 million tons of secondary product, further strengthening Africa’s contribution to global lithium supply.

Meanwhile, Zimbabwe – currently Africa’s largest lithium producer – is accelerating efforts to move up the value chain. Government policies restricting the export of raw lithium are encouraging investment in local processing and beneficiation facilities, supporting the production of higher-value lithium products and positioning the country as a key supplier to the global battery materials market.

Investment Momentum Builds Ahead of African Mining Week

With an estimated $276 billion in new investment required to avoid the forecast supply deficits beginning in 2028, Africa’s lithium-rich countries are well positioned to attract the capital needed to expand production and downstream processing.

In this context, African Mining Week 2026 – scheduled for October 14–16 in Cape Town – will serve as a key platform for global investors, project developers and policymakers to engage on opportunities within Africa’s lithium sector. As the continent’s premier mining investment event, the conference will feature high-level discussions, project showcases and strategic networking sessions aimed at accelerating partnerships across the lithium value chain.