At Forward Africa Forum in Nairobi, President Doumbouya links aluminium to Africa’s economic transformation

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In his speech at the Forward Africa Forum held in Nairobi, Kenya, President of Guinea, General Mamadi Doumbouya called upon African nations to rethink their place within the international economic arena and to shift from relying solely on selling raw materials towards industrialisation.

Addressing participants at the forum, President Doumbouya said, “Africa can no longer be a mere supplier of raw materials to feed the world's industries,” drawing applause from the audience.

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The statement underscored growing concerns over Africa’s long-standing dependence on exporting natural resources, including bauxite, gold, oil, lithium and cocoa, in raw form while value-added processing and manufacturing largely take place elsewhere.

Guinea, one of the world’s leading bauxite producers, has increasingly focused on strengthening domestic mineral processing and industrialisation efforts. The sentiments from Doumbouya came amid growing efforts aimed at encouraging African countries to keep more value out of their natural resources.

This was also consistent with the developing pan-African approach that has been championed by many leaders, who have called for greater economic independence and more involvement in international trade as a producer rather than a supplier of commodities.