Despite being endowed with some of the world’s richest deposits of critical minerals, Africa’s mining sector is experiencing a sustained decline in mineral exploration, a trend that could weigh on its future project pipeline over time.
BDO’s Annual Mining Report 2026 notes that Africa is simultaneously trying to reposition itself from a predominantly raw-materials supplier to a higher-value mining and processing hub, using measures such as export controls, local processing requirements and strategic partnerships.
This ambition, however, is being constrained by declining exploration investment, in addition to familiar regional challenges such as policy uncertainty, inadequate infrastructure and energy bottlenecks.
The findings were presented on the sidelines of this year’s Mining Indaba in Cape Town, where discussions were dominated by the increasing strategic importance of critical minerals.
Exploration dropping
The report shows that Africa’s share of global exploration spending has continued to fall, declining from 16.6% in 2012 to just 10.4% in 2024, equivalent to about $1.3 billion (R20.6 billion*) in exploration spend.
The drop in exploration is most evident at the grassroots level, where investment has fallen by 13.2 percentage points, showing a reduced appetite for early-stage risk and innovation.
