President Bola Tinubu has called for a global framework that benefits communities hosting critical minerals in Nigeria and Africa, ensuring value addition at the source.
This came just as Nigeria also backed the creation of global ethical standards for Artificial Intelligence (AI), aimed at accelerating development across the world.
Tinubu made the call at the Third Session of the 2025 Group of 20 (G20) Leaders’ Summit, held at the Johannesburg Expo Centre, South Africa, themed “A Fair and Just Future for All: Critical Minerals, Decent Work, Artificial Intelligence.”
The President, who was represented by Vice President Kashim Shettima, highlighted that for Nigeria and Africa, critical minerals were more than natural deposits, as they hold the promise of industrial transformation for the continent.
According to a release by a presidential spokesman in the Office of the Vice President, Stanley Nkwocha, the Nigerian leader stressed that while the possession of resources alone do not guarantee prosperity, relevant authorities and stakeholders must ensure that the extraction and trade of critical minerals were governed by fairness, transparency, and accountability.
Tinubu emphasised that such responsible extraction and trade were necessary to ensure that the wealth generated from hosting communities translate into shared progress. He said: “Nigeria calls for a global framework that promotes value addition at the source, supports local beneficiation, and ensures that communities hosting these resources are not left behind.
“The issue before us reaches far beyond the narrow arithmetic of economics and speaks to the moral character of the world we aspire to build.” He further stated that as the world advance through green and digital transitions, progress must remain people-centred.
“Decent work is the anchor that makes these transitions fair, inclusive, and sustainable. It is the foundation of development that ensures every person has the opportunity to contribute, thrive, and share in national prosperity,” he added.
The President disclosed that Nigeria, through the Renewed Hope Agenda, was investing in future-ready skills by empowering Nigerian youths through digital literacy, vocational training, and entrepreneurship.
For a fair and just future, Tinubu urged G20 leaders to deepen collaboration on technology transfer, capacity building, and inclusive investments that prioritise human dignity over profit alone.
On Artificial Intelligence, which has immense potential to accelerate development globally, the President said the task before G20 leaders, development partners, and governments was to ensure that AI remained a servant of humanity, not a force that reshapes society at the expense of those it ought to uplift.
“Nigeria supports the creation of global ethical standards for AI that uphold safety, transparency, and equity,” the President said, adding, “We must ensure that AI becomes a tool of empowerment, not exclusion; of job creation, not displacement.”
To harness AI’s job creation and empowerment potential, Tinubu called for deliberate partnerships between developed and developing nations, between the public and private sectors, and between innovation and inclusion.
“The G20 must therefore address systemic bias and foster sustained multilateral dialogue to ensure that the benefits of AI are shared equitably and its risks responsibly managed,” he added.
He noted that within a broader vision of shared responsibility and global stewardship, critical minerals, decent work, and Artificial Intelligence were bound by a single calling, which was to shape an economy that uplifts rather than excludes; an economy that measures its strength not only by growth but by the dignity it affords every human being.
