US–China Mineral Race Intensifies as Africa’s Mining Powerhouses Converge on Washington
The global race for critical minerals is entering a decisive phase, with Africa emerging as the central battleground as the United States steps up efforts to counter China’s entrenched dominance across the continent’s mining sector.
Washington is sharpening its focus on Africa’s vast mineral wealth as competition with Beijing shifts from strategic rhetoric to concrete execution. A new round of high-level meetings scheduled for early February underscores how vital African resources have become to U.S. industrial policy, clean energy ambitions, and national security planning.
The renewed push comes against the backdrop of China’s deep and expanding footprint in Africa’s extractive industries. From cobalt and copper in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) to iron ore in Guinea, Beijing has spent years consolidating supply chains that now underpin much of the global energy transition and advanced manufacturing ecosystem.
Determined to rebalance that influence, U.S. officials are accelerating direct engagement with African governments, promoting investment-led partnerships and encouraging American firms to take a more active role in developing strategic mineral assets.
On 20 January, the U.S. State Department announced that Secretary of State Marco Rubio will host the inaugural Critical Minerals Ministerial on 4 February. The gathering will bring together global partners to coordinate strategies for securing access to minerals essential for electric vehicles, defence systems, and clean energy technologies.
According to the State Department, strengthening critical mineral supply chains is now viewed as central to U.S. economic security, technological leadership, and the creation of a resilient, future-proof energy system.
Senior government officials and mining executives from several African countries are expected to attend. Reports indicate that the DRC, Kenya, and Guinea will be represented, with DRC President Félix Tshisekedi attending alongside Mining Minister Louis Watum Kabamba and Gécamines chairman Guy-Robert Lukama.
Africa at the Centre of a Strategic Rivalry
The ministerial follows a high-level finance meeting convened by U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, where representatives from the European Union, the UK, France, Germany, Italy, Australia, Canada, Japan, South Korea, and Mexico explored ways to secure strategic mineral supply chains beyond China’s control.
J. Peter Pham, former U.S. special envoy and now chair of U.S.-based mining firm Ivanhoe Atlantic, says Washington is increasingly prioritising countries capable of delivering reliable, investor-friendly projects.
According to Pham, African governments that can present verified mineral assets and bankable development plans are best positioned to attract U.S. support.
This signals a broader shift in U.S. engagement with Africa, from aid-centred diplomacy toward commercially viable, investment-driven partnerships aligned with long-term strategic interests.
That approach was evident when the Congolese government recently submitted detailed data on its mineral reserves to U.S. authorities, laying the groundwork for advancing a minerals cooperation framework first established during the Trump administration. President Tshisekedi’s administration has since provided a shortlist of state-owned assets, including cobalt, copper, manganese, gold, and lithium, for evaluation by potential U.S. investors.
Kenya is also gaining attention as a new frontier in Africa’s minerals landscape. A recent discovery by Shanta Gold, valued at more than $5 billion, has heightened the country’s strategic appeal as the U.S.–China rivalry increasingly plays out across African soil.
China’s influence, however, remains formidable. Guinea’s Simandou iron ore project, one of the world’s largest untapped reserves, recently shipped its first cargo to China, underscoring Beijing’s deep integration across Africa’s extractive sector.
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In response, Washington has intensified diplomatic outreach.
Senior U.S. Africa bureau official Nick Checker travelled to Conakry in January for the inauguration of President Mamadi Doumbouya, signalling growing U.S. interest in Guinea’s strategic resources.
In the DRC, despite persistent insecurity in the eastern regions, the government is moving swiftly to position itself as a cornerstone of Washington’s evolving minerals strategy, highlighting Africa’s growing leverage in a global contest that will shape the future of energy, technology, and geopolitics.
