Abuja, July 2, 2025 – The Federal Government is to launch “Africans for Africa Fund” as a special purpose vehicle to mobilise capital within Africa to develop the continent’s solid minerals sector.
Dele Alake, the Minister of Solid Minerals Development, disclosed this on Tuesday at a media briefing on the forthcoming 2025 African Natural Resources and Energy Investment Summit (AFNIS)
The summit will hold in Abuja from July 15 to July 17.
He said the fund would harness capital for African priorities with a focus on industrialisation, resource beneficiation, and strategic investments across the solid minerals value chain.
Alake said the launch of the Fund would be one of the major events at the fourth edition of AFNIS, which he said, had now grown into Africa’s flagship platform for investment matchmaking, cross-sector dialogue and long-term strategic partnerships in the extractives industry.
“One of the major highlights this year will be the formal launch of the ‘Africans for Africa’ Fund; a bold initiative designed to mobilise African capital for African priorities.
“This isn’t a slogan. It’s a shift in mindset. We are saying clearly: the time has come for Africans to invest in Africa, to back our industries, our innovations, and our infrastructure with the resources we already have.
Alake said the theme of the summit, “Harnessing Local Content for Sustainable Development”, reflected a bold pivot from raw material exports to domestic value addition and job creation.
“This year’s theme encourages a serious rethink about how Africa can shift away from exporting raw materials and instead build factories, refine minerals, generate power locally, and create jobs at home. This summit is about building value where the resources come from.
“What does that mean in real terms? It means we are done talking about potential. It means we are focused on production.
“On adding value. On ensuring that the minerals we mine, the gas we flare, the land we farm, and the sun that shines abundantly on this continent are all translated into real, measurable improvements in the lives of our people,” he said.
The minister was represented at the briefing by Obadiah Nkom, the Director-General of the Mining Cadastre Office, Abuja.
