Search for Critical Minerals: Is India Failing in Africa?

The future of global power will not be decided in boardrooms or battlefields- it will be shaped in the mines of Africa. The imperative of a global transition to a green economy, has triggered a frenetic quest for critical minerals, essential for batteries, solar technologies, electric vehicles and other elements of advanced technology. At the 2023 G20 Summit, India championed the need for fair access to critical minerals especially for developing countries. Yet, despite setting an ambitious net-zero target for 2070, India remains on the sidelines of the global race for these indispensable resources, while China, the United States, the UK, and Australia move aggressively to secure their supplies.

Recognizing this urgency, the 2024-2025 Union Budget announced the ‘Critical Minerals Mission’ to secure lithium, cobalt and other rare minerals. Its ambitious semiconductor and chip manufacturing goals are hard to materialise, however, given India’s presence in the global mineral supply chain remains negligible.

Efforts by state-owned Coal India Ltd. to explore lithium reserves in Argentina, in partnership with a US company marks a timid step forward. While Argentina and Chile are rich sources of certain rare metals, and Ukraine and Russia have significant reserves, Africa holds the world’s most valuable deposits, particularly the Platinum Group Metals, which are vital for high-end industrial applications.

Who controls the supply?

The global market for these minerals, valued at over $320 billion annually, is overwhelmingly shaped by China, which controls 85-90% of the rare earth supply chain, from extraction to refining. Beijing has secured preferential access to resources through infrastructure-for-minerals agreements, often at the expense of leaving the host nations with unsustainable debt. Whereas, western nations, led by the United States, Canada, and Australia, are pushing back through the Minerals Security Partnership (MSP), an initiative designed to counter Chinese control over supply chains.

Africa, home to 30% of the world’s mineral resources, remains largely absent from India;’s strategy. The continent possesses the largest deposits of cobalt, lithium reserves in Zimbabwe and Namibia, along with significant stores of manganese and bauxite. The Democratic Republic of Congo alone has 70% of the world’s coltan, a mineral required for high-end electronics.

Even after nine bilateral agreements with Africa in the mining sector, India remains behind pace as nothing much has come out of those agreements.

If India is serious about securing its technology future, it must turn its attention to Africa. The geopolitical stakes are at an all time high.

Beyond extraction: Building a sustainable partnership

For Africa, these minerals represent more than just economic opportunity; they are key to industrialisation, job creation and long-term economic autonomy. In contrast to China’s resource-extraction model, that prioritises control over supply chains, India offers deeper, more sustainable partnerships.

The bilateral trade between India and Africa in 2023 reached $98 billion with $43 billion attributed to mining and natural resources. India and Africa have a shared history and given India’s image as a genuine development ally, the nation is ideally poised to take a leadership role in the 14-member Minerals Security Partnership (MSP). Moreover, the Chinese debt-trap diplomacy has led countries like Zambia and Angola into financial distress and loss of economic autonomy, which is increasingly prompting African governments to look at alternative development partners beyond their past colonial masters - which is where India enjoys a strategic advantage.

India’s ability to offer flexibility, fairer terms, and a partnership that respects African nations as equal players rather than resource suppliers is unique. Countries like Angola, Botswana, the Democratic Republic of Congo, South Africa, Tanzania, Uganda, are keen to work with India rather than be exploited by predatory international miners.

India’s approach to minerals in Africa has always been slow but strategic. Instead of imposing restrictive trade terms or financing projects that leave countries in financial distress, it focuses on joint ventures, technology-sharing, and long-term economic cooperation. Indian companies such as Tata Steel, Vedanta, and NMDC are already expanding operations in Africa, bringing investments in refining, geological mapping, and infrastructure development. Through initiatives like the Duty-Free Tariff Preference Scheme, India already facilitates African exports.

A Defining Choice for the Future

The global race for critical minerals is intensifying, and Africa sits at the center of this high-stakes contest. Will the continent continue to be a mere supplier to global powers, or will it leverage its resources to drive its own industrial revolution?

For India, the answer will define its place in the new world order. India’s current hesitant approach risks relegating it to the sidelines of the most critical economic and technological shift of the 21st century. The longer it waits, the more ground it cedes to China, Western powers, and multinational mining giants.

For Africa, the choice is just as defining:

● Does it continue selling raw materials, benefiting foreign corporations while its economies stagnate?

● Or does it partner with nations like India to build domestic industries, create jobs, and secure long-term economic independence?

The answer should be obvious.

Baljinder Sharma is Convenor, India Africa Business Network. Views are personal.