Kenya is edging closer to a landmark critical minerals agreement with the United States, with President William Ruto pushing for local processing and value addition rather than the export of raw materials.
Speaking on the sidelines of the G7 summit in Canada, Ruto said negotiations with Washington were at an advanced stage and could soon culminate in an agreement covering rare earths and other strategic minerals. A key provision of the proposed deal would ensure that minerals extracted in Kenya are processed within the country, allowing the East African nation to capture a greater share of the economic value generated by its resources.
The agreement comes amid growing global competition for critical minerals that are essential for renewable energy technologies, electric vehicles and advanced manufacturing. As demand for these resources rises, African governments are increasingly seeking to move beyond the long-standing model of exporting raw materials while higher-value processing and manufacturing take place elsewhere.
Kenya possesses significant untapped deposits of rare earth elements as well as niobium, lithium, graphite, copper and nickel, all of which are attracting heightened international interest. These minerals are regarded as strategic assets in the global race to secure supply chains for the energy transition and emerging technologies.
For Ruto, the negotiations with the United States represent more than a mining agreement. They reflect a broader effort to redefine Africa’s economic relationships with major powers. He argued that future partnerships should be centred on investment, industrialisation and job creation rather than aid dependency or the extraction of resources without meaningful local benefits.
The Kenyan leader also stressed that African nations should not be forced to choose between competing global powers. Instead, he said, the continent intends to pursue partnerships with multiple countries based on its own development priorities and economic interests.
Beyond minerals, Ruto used the G7 gathering to advocate reforms to the global financial system, arguing that Africa’s challenge is not a shortage of capital but limited access to affordable financing. He called for greater use of guarantees and risk-sharing mechanisms that would help unlock domestic pension funds, insurance assets and other sources of long-term capital for development.
If concluded, the minerals deal would mark another step in Africa’s growing push to retain more value from its natural resources while positioning itself as a stronger participant in global industrial supply chains.
Emmanuel Abara Benson is a business journalist and editor covering artificial intelligence, global markets, and emerging technology.
He has previously worked with Business Insider Africa and Nairametrics, reporting on finance, startups, and innovation.
His work focuses on AI, digital economy, and global tech trends.
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