- Russian, U.S. and European firms are mapping Africa’s minerals and digitising records.
- Russia’s Rosgeologiya will map more than half of Mali.
- Congo is building its own geological database.
- Zimbabwe’s digital cadastre is due to be fully operational by December.
RUSSIAN, U.S. and European companies are racing to map Africa’s mineral resources and digitise historical records, raising questions over who owns and controls the geological data.
Russia’s state-owned Rosgeologiya has agreed with Mali’s Ministry of Mines to map more than half of the country and build a digital system to manage geological data, mineral licences and mining oversight. The deal was signed on the sidelines of the Russia-Africa forum in Moscow.
Rosgeologiya’s overseas unit, Zarubezhgeologia, will produce geological maps of two areas that together cover more than half of Mali. The maps will identify zones that look promising for exploration.
Zarubezhgeologia chief Alexey Desyatkin said the project would make information on Mali’s mineral resources more accessible and transparent, including for investors.
Mali is looking to develop minerals beyond gold, including lithium. Its military-led government has deepened ties with Moscow since the 2020 coup. Zarubezhgeologia has also worked on or pursued mapping projects in Sudan, Equatorial Guinea, Angola and the Central African Republic.
In Congo, Spain’s Xcalibur Smart Mapping began a three-year geological and geophysical survey in October covering nearly 700,000 square kilometres. Congo is also building a national geological database, and sensitive information is expected to stay under government control.
U.S.-based KoBold Metals has sought to digitise colonial-era geological documents held at Belgium’s AfricaMuseum. The records could help identify copper, cobalt and lithium deposits in Congo. The effort has prompted a dispute over access to the archives and their commercial use. A separate digitisation project backed by the European Union is under way.
Detailed maps and digitised records help governments set exploration priorities and improve licensing. They also give companies a better view of where to spend exploration money.
The involvement of foreign entities raises questions over who owns and controls information that could shape investment negotiations and the terms on which mineral wealth is developed.
Zimbabwe is building a digital mining cadastre that the mines ministry says will be fully operational by December.
Mines Minister Polite Kambamura has said the system must let an investor “establish which ground is available, who holds what right and what obligations attach to it.”
The Zimbabwe Prospectors Union has asked the ministry for clear maps and a full list of reserved areas and Exclusive Prospecting Orders before the new system takes effect. The union says photocopied maps cause errors of 25 to 75 metres on the ground.
