Africans For Africa Fund: Paving the Way for Mineral Sovereignty

A new era for African ownership in the continent’s lucrative mining sector was officially ushered in at the recently concluded AFNIS 2025 with the launch of the Africans for Africa Fund (AfA Fund). This groundbreaking initiative, stemming from the collaborative efforts of Core International, Motimosé Metals, Africa Minerals Strategy Group and Allied Trust Asset Management, aims to empower Africans to take an active and equitable role in harnessing their vast mineral wealth.

A powerful speech delivered by Tim Tokun, the appointed Managing Director of the Africans for Africa Initiative, during the launch, challenged prevailing myths about resource consumption and highlighted Africa’s immense potential. Tokun emphasized that despite claims of the global North “getting more from less” in terms of material consumption, global extraction of resources continues to accelerate. In 2021 alone, more materials were mined from the earth than the sum total extracted from the dawn of humanity through to 1950. This staggering statistic underscores the enduring importance of mining as the bedrock of civilization, with Africa proudly hosting 35% of all global mineral resources.

For too long, African nations and communities have primarily benefited from resource rent, a model that often fails to trickle down to the grassroots. The AfA Fund seeks to fundamentally decouple from these traditional economic structures, which have historically favoured the global North. As Tim Tokun passionately articulated, true sovereignty extends beyond flags and football teams to energy sovereignty and mineral sovereignty.

The AfA Initiative, which the fund is a part of, will achieve three critical objectives:
Create wealth for a meaningful magnitude of Africans from African resources.
Gain respectable parity alongside foreign exploration and mining companies.
Facilitate a visible uplifting of frontline communities, who are the indigenous landlords of these mineral resources and hold the social license to operate.

Tokun highlighted a significant shift in global demand for metals. While gold and diamonds once dominated interest, the advent of renewable energy has ushered in a new wave of “unsexy” but now critical metals like graphite, cobalt, and manganese. These minerals are now staples in battery chemistries, making Africa’s abundant reserves even more vital to the global energy transformation.

In a statement by Suleiman Zakari, co-founder of
Africans for Africa Initiative, he disclosed that AfA Fund aims to directly address the projected $2.1 trillion funding shortfall in the mining industry by 2050. Adding that the need for 61 new copper mines and 52 new lithium mines to meet energy transformation requirements by 2050 underscores the urgency for innovative financing models. The AfA Fund positions itself as the panacea Africa has been seeking to rethink mining finance.

The statement detailed the Journey to Launch: A Comprehensive Recap of the AfA Initiative.
The AfA Fund’s launch is the culmination of nearly a year of meticulous planning and strategic execution. Born out of the landmark commitments feature at AFNIS 2024, the initiative sought to move beyond mere discussions to actionable outcomes.

From July to October 2024, the initiative laid its foundational goals, bifurcated into two core components:
The AFA Initiative Community: A pan-African professional network for experts, entrepreneurs, and rising professionals in the natural resources sector. It aims to foster mentorship, capacity building, and peer support, amplifying African voices and participation across the mining value chain.
The AFA Investment Fund: A closed-end specialist fund with a hybrid structure, drawing capital from both retail investors (targeting the 1.2 billion on the continent and 400 million in the diaspora) and institutional investors. This approach provides a unified vehicle for Africans to invest directly in their continent’s development.
Between January and May 2025, the team worked on constructing the digital platform, refining user journeys, and developing a comprehensive marketing and promotional strategy. A distinguished Advisory Board comprising seasoned experts from across the African mining sector and beyond was also confirmed. Notable members include:
Segun Lawson, CEO, Thor Explorations Plc (Nigeria)
Osam Iyahen, Senior Director, Africa Finance Corporation (Nigeria)
Rt. Hon. Kwasi Kwarteng, Former Chancellor of the Exchequer (UK)
Prof. Thomson Sinkala, MD, Thomro Investments (Zambia)
John Sisay, CEO, Consolidated Copper Corporation (Sierra Leone)
Zenzi Awases, President, Association of Women and Mining in Africa (Namibia)
Thabile Makgala, Director, Rio Tinto, (South Africa)
Capitalizing the Fund: A Strong Start
From March 2025 to the present, significant attention has been placed on mobilizing institutional capital. The fundraising strategy is well on track, with advanced negotiations with 10 institutional partners. The Initiative expects to close an initial $50 million from institutional partners within the first 90 days of the fund’s launch. This initial capital will be deployed into a diversified pipeline of early-stage, high-potential mining projects with strong local ownership.

The first fund is slated to close at $100 million, with a minimum of 5 and a maximum of 7 investments planned within the first year, and the remaining by the second anniversary. A second fund is projected to close at $150 million, bringing the total to a quarter of a billion dollars, an amount the initiative believes will be “just warming up.”

The official launch of the Africans for Africa Fund on July 17, 2025, during AFNIS 2025 in Abuja, Nigeria, marks a pivotal moment. It signifies not only the debut of a pioneering fund championing African ownership but also solidifies the AfA Initiative as a long-term platform for empowerment, investment, and transformation. As Tim Tokun and the leadership proudly state, the vision is clear: “Africans building Africa not just in word, but in capital, capacity, and community.