Transitions and Resilience: Natural Resource Governance Trends in Africa

The document argues that achieving a sustainable future requires 'decoupling' economic growth from resource use and waste. While the global transition toward renewable energy reduces fossil fuel reliance, it increases the demand for critical minerals and creates new challenges regarding e-waste. For Africa, this transition presents opportunities for industrialization and green technology adoption, but risks include stranded assets, economic marginalization, and governance failures in the mining sector.

• Sustainable development requires 'decoupling', which consists of resource decoupling (reducing reliance on physical inputs, such as substituting fossil fuels with renewables) and impact decoupling (reducing waste through recycling and efficiency).
• Technological innovation is necessary but insufficient for sustainability; an over-reliance on 'technological fixes' can reduce the urgency for essential cultural, social, and political transformations.
• The transition to renewable energy does not eliminate reliance on natural resources; instead, it shifts demand toward critical minerals. The amount of minerals needed per unit of power-generation capacity has risen by 50% since 2010, and demand for graphite, lithium, and cobalt could increase by nearly 500% by 2050.
• The growth of green technologies is creating a significant e-waste crisis. In 2019, over 53 million tonnes of e-waste were produced with less than 18% recycled. By 2050, up to 78 million tonnes of solar panels may reach their end of life.
• The green transition is shifting global power dynamics, with China currently dominating as the largest producer of critical raw materials and a leader in the manufacturing of electric cars, batteries, and solar cells.
• Africa faces specific risks from the energy transition, including the potential for 'stranded assets' to disrupt states reliant on fossil fuel exports and the risk of being marginalized as major powers prioritize national interests over multilateralism.
• To benefit from the green transition, Africa must prioritize value addition of raw materials on the continent and strengthen regional value chains to avoid simply exporting unprocessed minerals.

APA

BENKENSTEIN, A. (2022). Transitions and Resilience: Natural Resource Governance Trends in Africa. South African Institute of International Affairs. https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Policy-Insights-134-benkenstein.pdf

Chicago

BENKENSTEIN, ALEX. Transitions and Resilience: Natural Resource Governance Trends in Africa. South African Institute of International Affairs, 2022. https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Policy-Insights-134-benkenstein.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=BENKENSTEIN |first1=ALEX |title=Transitions and Resilience: Natural Resource Governance Trends in Africa |publisher=South African Institute of International Affairs |date=July 2022 |url=https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Policy-Insights-134-benkenstein.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{benkenstein2022transitions, author = {BENKENSTEIN, ALEX}, title = {{Transitions and Resilience: Natural Resource Governance Trends in Africa}}, institution = {South African Institute of International Affairs}, year = {2022}, month = jul, url = {https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Policy-Insights-134-benkenstein.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }