WASHINGTON, 19 Oct. - (ANA) - US policymakers must support the private sector’s push to strengthen African critical mineral supply chains by enabling American government bodies to take more equity stakes in African mining projects, said an influential Washington business lobby group.

 

The call, in a new report by the US Chamber of Commerce, came a week after the Senate confirmed Benjamin Black as the new chief executive of the International Development Finance Corporation, a US agency that has a budget of about $60 billion to spend in regions including Africa. 

 

Black, the son of hedge fund billionaire Leon, is himself a seasoned finance investor and has said he wants to engage more closely with Wall Street to boost DFC’s influence as it competes with Chinese players.

 

Ellington Arnold, who co-authored the report, said a key opportunity for US investors lay in supporting African governments’ ambitions to move up the value chain by processing more of the minerals mined in their countries. 

 

“It’s a productive way for us to rebalance US supply chains as well as support jobs and economic growth in these countries,” said Kendra Gaither, president of the Chamber’s US-Africa Business Center.

 

Arnold explained that creating more flexibility for the DFC and US Export-Import Bank could help derisk investment for private capital investors who were unfamiliar with African markets.   - (ANA) - 

 

AB/ANA/19 October 2025 - -