Africa and the ‘resource curse’: export restrictions and legislative efforts climb agenda again
Zimbabwe banned exports of tungsten and antimony ores and concentrates with immediate effect on September 8, its second such move this year after it suspended exports of all raw minerals and lithium concentrates in February. Gabon, Ghana, the Democratic Republic of Congo and South Africa have also announced or revived export restrictions on raw or concentrated minerals, and the OECD reports that export restrictions on critical raw materials rose five-fold between 2009 and 2024. The DRC’s cobalt export suspension in February 2025 was followed by a more than fourfold rise in cobalt hydroxide prices in China, before prices later declined.
Why it matters: The measures illustrate the resource curse theme, as African governments use export restrictions to try to retain mineral value and build domestic processing capacity.