On 2nd February 2025, On the sidelines of the continuous efforts exerted by the Ministry of Petroleum and Mineral Resources to advance the Mining Sector and promote investment in this vital industry, and within the framework of the Ministry's key strategic pillars, particularly enhancing regional cooperation and economic integration, especially with African countries, to maximize the added value of natural resources and mineral resources and harness the vast potential of the African continent in light of shared objectives and common interests.
Egypt's participation received strong interest and a warm welcome from mining ministers and executives of major international mining companies attending the Mining Indaba Conference, held in Cape Town, South Africa, from 3–6 February 2025. The event is regarded as Africa's largest and most comprehensive mining conference.
Eng. Karim Badawi, Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources, participated as a keynote speaker in the main ministerial panel entitled "Forging a Unified African Mining Front: Collaboration for Sustainable Development," alongside a distinguished group of African mining leaders and ministers. The panel featured Gwede Mantashe, Minister of Mineral and Petroleum Resources of South Africa; Kizito Pakabomba Kapinga Mulume, Minister of Mines of the Democratic Republic of the Congo; and Paul Kabuswe, Minister of Mines and Minerals Development of Zambia. The session was moderated by Dr. Marit Kitaw, Director of the African Minerals Development Centre.
During his remarks, Eng. Karim Badawi reviewed Egypt's mining sector modernization efforts and the key pillars of the Ministry's strategy in this regard. These include a dedicated pillar aimed at achieving a qualitative transformation of the mining sector and increasing its contribution to Egypt's GDP from the current 1% to between 5% and 6%. He also highlighted efforts to transform the Egyptian Mineral Resources Authority into an economic entity, as well as initiatives to strengthen HSE, and energy efficiency across all stages of the mining value chain. He noted that Egypt's mining sector is beginning to reap the benefits of its modernization efforts and is committed to building upon the progress achieved.
In this context, the Minister highlighted the promising opportunities and vast potential of Egypt's mining sector, supported by the new Egyptian government's program aimed at attracting additional investments and enhancing the sector's competitiveness within the framework of Egypt Vision 2030, with the goal of positioning Egypt as a global mining investment destination. He emphasized the sector's commitment to building sustainable partnerships with all stakeholders in the mining industry. In this regard, he mentioned the recent completion of the newly amended Mineral Exploitation Agreement Model, which reflects efforts to improve the investment climate and establish a robust framework that ensures mutual benefits for all parties, in line with Egypt's comprehensive mining modernization strategy.
The Minister also highlighted that work is currently underway on a value-addition and mining industries strategy, as well as another strategy addressing the environmental and social impacts of mining activities.
He further reviewed the key pillars of Egypt's strategy for maximizing the benefits of critical minerals in support of the energy transition. He added that the demand for critical minerals has increased significantly in recent years due to growing global demand for clean energy technologies. At the same time, the production of these minerals presents several environmental and social challenges. In this regard, he emphasized that Egypt's mining sector is working to strengthen cooperation with industry stakeholders to develop strategies that promote responsible sourcing and sustainable production of critical minerals.
Eng. Badawi also highlighted initiatives aimed at encouraging the use of renewable energy sources throughout various stages of mining operations, as well as efforts to improve operational efficiency in Egypt's mining sector through the adoption of advanced digital technologies and more efficient equipment, thereby contributing to emissions reduction.
He added that Egypt's mining sector is preparing to launch Egypt Mining Portal, modeled after Egypt Upstream Gateway (EUG), with the objective of providing detailed geological data and comprehensive information to investors while enhancing transparency and facilitating communication between EMRA and investors.
In essence, Minister Karim Badawi stressed the importance of cooperation and integration among African countries to maximize the value derived from the continent's abundant mineral resources through greater value addition, ultimately delivering tangible benefits to the peoples of Africa.
