African countries have called for support on ways to improve results from the use of natural resources and stated citizens should be included in and benefit from the subsequent achievements. Consequently, the African Natural Resources Center (ABRC) has set out an online consultation on its draft strategy for 2015 – 2020 and provided it to stakeholders, in an attempt to seek beneficial comments and recommendations. There will be a series of regional and global consultations accompanying the online consultation.
ABRC’s objective is to obtain information that will help the centre better understand and provide better advice to African countries on natural resource management – both renewable and non-renewable. It will help African countries increase economic deliveries from resources exploitation by advocating good governance, building institutional capacity, providing policy advice, offering strategic guidance and delivering technical assistance.
Nevertheless, there are major sustainable development and governance challenges, which the region’s leaders have identified and stated: poor management and regulation of the harmful environmental, social and human rights impacts of mining have struck critical and, in some cases, hostile attitudes among mining communities towards the industry and government.
Edited from Press Release by Harleigh Hobbs