Beyond Value Addition: Guarding Against Green Extractivism in Africa’s Energy Transition

Africa’s relationship with extractivism is deeply colonial, shaped by externally driven demand, uneven power relations, and economic models designed to serve global markets rather than local needs. A critical and decolonial lens reminds us that industrialisation alone does not guarantee justice. Without deliberate structural change, value addition risks becoming a repackaged version of extraction, one that processes minerals locally but continues to externalise social and ecological costs, marginalise communities, and concentrate power in the hands of multinational corporations and domestic elites.

This is the central tension of the current moment: the risk of green extractivism.

As the world races to decarbonise, Africa is increasingly positioned as a strategic supplier for “clean” technologies produced elsewhere. The danger is that the continent is once again asked to align its development trajectory with global priorities, this time under the banner of sustainability, without sufficient control over technology, pricing, intellectual property, or downstream manufacturing. If value chains remain externally governed, Africa’s role may change in form but not in substance.

The growing emphasis on multilateral platforms such as the G20 reflects a strategic effort to influence global policy from within. While this engagement is important, it must be approached with realism. Global governance spaces are not neutral. Power asymmetries persist, even when Africa is present at the table. Aligning with global agendas must not come at the expense of African-defined priorities, development pathways, and knowledge systems.

Equally important is how governance reforms are conceptualised. Strengthening institutions, renegotiating contracts, and improving tax systems are essential steps. However, governance cannot be reduced to technical fixes alone. True accountability requires centring the voices of mining-affected communities, workers, artisanal miners, and women, those who live with the everyday consequences of extraction. A transition that speaks the language of inclusion while excluding lived experience risks losing legitimacy.

The same caution applies to Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) frameworks. While African-led ESG standards present an opportunity to shift the narrative, ESG must move beyond compliance and investor assurance. If it is to be transformative, it must be rooted in justice: community consent, labour rights, environmental repair, and equitable benefit-sharing. Otherwise, ESG risks becoming a branding exercise that sanitises harm rather than addressing it.

At its core, the debate on value addition is not merely economic, it is political and ethical. The question is not whether Africa should industrialise, but how, for whom, and on whose terms. A truly just energy transition must confront historical extraction, redistribute power within value chains, and recognise that minerals are embedded in social, cultural, and ecological systems, not just markets.

As SARW, our role is to hold this tension honestly. We advocate for industrialisation that breaks with dependency, not one that deepens it. We support value addition that strengthens sovereignty, not one that shifts extraction upstream while leaving structures intact. And we remain committed to amplifying voices that are too often excluded from high-level policy conversations.

The energy transition offers Africa an opening, but only vigilance, solidarity, and justice-centred policymaking will determine whether it becomes a moment of transformation or repetition.

Key Takeaways

• Value addition is necessary but not sufficient: Without structural reform, it may reproduce extractive inequalities in new forms.
• Green industrialisation must avoid green extractivism: Sustainability cannot be reduced to climate goals while       social and ecological harms persist.
• Africa’s engagement in global forums must be strategic and critical: Presence alone does not equal power.
• Governance and ESG frameworks must be rooted in justice, not compliance: Community voices, labour rights, and       environmental repair are central.
• A just energy transition is political: It must redistribute power, not simply relocate production.