Südafrikas neue Strategie für kritische Mineralien: Versprechen und Widersprüche

The Critical Minerals and Metals Strategy for South Africa (CMMSSA) aims to leverage the country's mineral wealth to drive industrialization and economic growth during the global energy transition. While the strategy introduces a science-based classification of critical minerals and a multi-pillar approach to value addition, it faces significant hurdles including institutional capacity constraints, regulatory uncertainty, and a lack of integration with social justice and 'just transition' principles. Furthermore, the document notes a tension between the CMMSSA's investor-friendly goals and the more restrictive racial transformation requirements found in draft amendments to the Mineral and Petroleum Resources Development Act (MPRDA).

• The CMMSSA establishes a context-specific, science-based classification for critical minerals using eight core indicators, identifying platinum, manganese, iron ore, coal, and chrome ore as high-criticality commodities.
• The strategy seeks to move South Africa beyond the role of a raw material supplier by focusing on local value addition, specifically targeting battery and hydrogen value chains and the circular economy.
• Implementation of the strategy is threatened by systemic institutional weaknesses, including poor coordination between government departments such as the DMRE, DTIC, DSI, DHET, and the Treasury, as well as bureaucratic inefficiencies.
• The CMMSSA largely ignores the justice dimension of mineral extraction, failing to integrate the principles of the Just Energy Transition Partnership (JETP) or address the impacts of increased industrialization on local communities and biodiversity.
• There is a direct policy contradiction between the CMMSSA and draft amendments to the Mineral and Petroleum Resources Development Act (MPRDA), which introduce stricter racial ownership targets and ministerial controls that may deter the investment the strategy seeks.
• Regional integration goals are hindered by practical barriers such as poor transport and energy links, weak border coordination, and divergent governance frameworks across the region.

APA

Hofmeyr, J. (2025). Südafrikas neue Strategie für kritische Mineralien: Versprechen und Widersprüche. Africa Policy Research Institute. https://afripoli.org/de/sudafrikas-neue-strategie-fur-kritische-mineralien-versprechen-und-widerspruche-en

Chicago

Hofmeyr, Judy. Südafrikas neue Strategie für kritische Mineralien: Versprechen und Widersprüche. Africa Policy Research Institute, 2025. https://afripoli.org/de/sudafrikas-neue-strategie-fur-kritische-mineralien-versprechen-und-widerspruche-en.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Hofmeyr |first1=Judy |title=Südafrikas neue Strategie für kritische Mineralien: Versprechen und Widersprüche |publisher=Africa Policy Research Institute |date=15 September 2025 |url=https://afripoli.org/de/sudafrikas-neue-strategie-fur-kritische-mineralien-versprechen-und-widerspruche-en |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{hofmeyr2025sdafrikas, author = {Hofmeyr, Judy}, title = {{Südafrikas neue Strategie für kritische Mineralien: Versprechen und Widersprüche}}, institution = {Africa Policy Research Institute}, year = {2025}, month = sep, url = {https://afripoli.org/de/sudafrikas-neue-strategie-fur-kritische-mineralien-versprechen-und-widerspruche-en}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }