Nigeria’s Vice President, Kashim Shettima, on Monday represented President Bola Ahmed Tinubu at the Second Africa Minerals Strategy Group (AMSG) High-Level Roundtable on Critical Minerals Development in Africa, held on the sidelines of the 80th Session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in New York.

Delivering President Tinubu’s remarks, Shettima stressed the need for a complete overhaul of the global financial architecture governing Africa’s mineral resources. He emphasized that African nations must not only finance their own mineral sectors but also assert control over the global supply chains of their products.

“We must take the bull by the horns in financing our future. Never again shall we wait for capital to trickle in. With sovereign funds, blended vehicles, and innovative tools like the Africa Mineral Token, Africa shall finance Africa,” the Vice President declared.

He further noted that Africa’s mineral wealth, including cobalt, lithium, graphite, gold, and rare earths, must be safeguarded collectively, rather than as fragmented states, in order to wield true power in the global supply chain.