UN ECA Initiates Project to Enhance SADC Critical Minerals Value Chains
The United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) has launched a €15-million project aimed at strengthening the critical minerals value chains in the Southern African Development Community (SADC) region. Officially launched in Lusaka, Zambia, on June 2, 2026, the project is titled 'Fostering Environmentally and Socially Responsible, Decarbonised, Inclusive and Transformative Value Chains for Critical Energy Transition Minerals in the SADC Region.' It will be implemented over five years in countries including the Democratic Republic of Congo, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. The initiative seeks to promote sustainable industrialization, value addition, job creation, and environmental protection in the region's critical minerals sector. ECA Southern Africa regional director Eunice Kamwendo emphasized the project's role in moving beyond raw mineral exports to value addition and industrial production, highlighting the region's significant contribution to global energy transition m... 
