The specific objectives of the Centre shall be to:

• Ensure that there are coherent policies and robust regulatory and legal frameworks on exploration, exploitation, licensing, contracting, taxation, exporting, mineral processing and handling at the national level which are harmonized at the regional and continental levels;
• develop a diversified and globally competitive African mineral industry which contributes to broad economic and social growth through the creation linkages;
• contribute to the regional integration agenda and the boosting of intra-African trade;
• promote good governance in mineral resources development for the betterment of local communities in Africa;
• foster sustainable development principles based on environmentally and socially responsible mining, which respects human rights, health and safety of the local communities, workers and other stakeholders;
• Continue to the Plan of Action for Accelerating Industrial Development of Africa (AIDA) through promotion of beneficiation, value addition, industrial linkages, responsible investments, innovation and diversification.

The Centre’s Statute was adopted by the 26^th Ordinary session of the AU Assembly in January 2016 (Assembly/AU/Dec.589(XXVI)). As of July 2022, three Member States (Guinea, Mali and Zambia), had ratified the Statute and eight member states have signed, include Chad, Comoros, Ghana, Mauritania, Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic, Sierra Leone, Sudan, and Togo. The Assembly further urged the AU Member States to expedite the ratifications of its Statute. A minimum of fifteen (15) ratifications are required for entry into force of the Statute and full operationalization of the Centre.

In 2018 the Assembly of the Heads of State and Government endorsed the Republic of Guinea’s bid to host the AMDC through a competitive bidding process. In February 2019, the AMDC was officially handed over to the AU to start its transitioning journey to Conakry, Guinea. Having negotiated and successfully concluded the AMDC Host Agreement, the African Union and the Government of Guinea signed a Hosting Agreement in May 2021. Owing to the COVID19 pandemic and changes of Government in the Republic of Guinea, the move to Guinea was postponed but the Commission is hoping to resume this set of activities anytime in the future.

It has been thirteen years since the African Union Heads of State and Government adopted the Africa Mining Vision (AMV). In the Vision, the continent’s considerable mineral endowments were recognized as a key driver for structural transformation, industrialization, and sustainable growth[1]. Since 2009, several developments have occurred on the continent to spur Africa’s development, notably the launch of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) on 1 January 2021, which provides an opportunity to boost regional value chains. For the mining sector, the African Minerals Development Center (AMDC) was established in 2013 by the Summit of the African Union Heads of State and Government, to provide strategic operational support and coordination for the implementation of the AMV and its Action Plan and was initially a project housed at the UNECA. The AMDC’s Vision was to become the Facilitator of choice to enable AU Member States realize the AMV. The AMDC made significant strides as it has become the repository of knowledge on matters relating to the AMV and has succeeded in securing global recognition of the AMV. However, there were limitations in achieving the expected outcomes and impacts given the magnitude and complexity of a task that calls for a radical change not only in the management of mineral resources but also in conceiving the economic transformation and industrialization of the continent.

Recently, the AUC and the UNDP have been partnering to support the AMDC in developing its five-year Business Plan and organizing the First African Forum on Mining in 2019. The AMDC is being supported through the ACP-EU Development Minerals Programme (Phase II), initiated by the Secretariat of the OACPS (the Organization for African, Caribbean and Pacific States, formerly known as the ACP Group of States), financed by the European Commission and UNDP, and implemented by UNDP at the request of the OACPS.

This arrangement seeks to ensure the effective implementation of the services of the AMDC through a coordinated approach under a professional and semi-independent structure. This will allow the AMDC to respond to AU member states’ needs with the flexibility and swiftness needed to address the current challenges in the mineral sector. As a result, the UNDP successfully recruited an Interim Secretariat to oversee the Centre’s establishment and operationalization, comprised of an Interim Director, a Senior Advisor on Geological and Mineral Information System, a Senior Advisor on Policy and Mineral Resources Governance, a Program officer, an Administrative and Financial Officer and several consultants.

[1] Africa Mining Vision (AUC, 2009): https://au.int/en/ti/amv/about

The operational AMDC Governance Structures will constitute of three main organs, these are[1]:

• The Conference of States Parties;
• The Minerals Advisory Board; and
• The Secretariat.

[1] Statute of the African Minerals Development Centre (January, 2016): https://au.int/en/treaties/statute-african-minerals-development-centre

The Africa Mining Vision (AMV) is a policy framework that was created by the African Union in 2009 to ensure that Africa utilizes its mineral resources. It calls for the “Transparent, equitable and optimal exploitation of mineral resources to underpin broad-based sustainable growth and socio-economic development”.

The implementation instruments of the AMV are:

• The Africa Minerals Governance Framework (AMGF);
• Geological and Minerals Information System (GMIS)
• AMV-Private Sector Compact; 
• African Minerals and Energy Resource Classification Management System and Pan African Reporting Code (AMREC-PARC)

•  African Union Commodity Strategy.