SA’s economic lifeboat may be tucked away in the Kalahari Desert. The US Geological Survey estimates that the country is home to 70% of global manganese reserves, much of which is under this area. It also flags manganese as one of the only critical minerals — out of a list of 50 — without a satisfactory substitute. This may make the Kalahari the most valuable desert on earth. ...

It is capital-intensive and expensive, yet there are upside benefits to its use...

Within SA’s energy sector are two compounding challenges: energy insecurity and the resulting inflation. As we wait on news regarding interest rates it’s worth noting that monetary policy can offer only limited reprieve to both challenges. ...

Thrilled this book is finally out. It was a privilege to co-author it under the brilliant guidance of Jim Cust and Albert Zeufack.  With rich deposits of cobalt, copper, manganese, platinum, lithium, etc, many African countries are well-positioned to reap the benefits of decarbonization. ...

It would be a grave mistake to build policies around these indices...

Industrialisation decoupled from emissions will help create jobs and increase power supply...

The rise in China’s export restrictions for critical minerals highlights the economic diplomacy war chest it is willing to leverage as geopolitical tensions rise....

Become climate friendly right away or say goodbye to affordable and accessible borrowing...

The wave of interest by governments in both green commodities and building secure supply chains is unprecedented...

If we scramble towards renewables our aggregated efforts can yield improvements quickly, international panel says...

SA is probably headed towards a resource windfall. It’s a welcome and much-needed boost to fiscal revenue. But what’s required to ensure the country can benefit from it? First, we need to look at the market dynamics that underpin the surge....

US President Joe Biden has been in the Oval Office for just over two years, which has seen the Covid-19 pandemic, high inflation and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Yet it’s only now that he’s drawing near to the use of his first presidential veto, and it’s over something relatively obscure: pension funds. ...

Introduced in 2005 and most recently updated in 2017, the joint World Bank–International Monetary Fund (IMF) Low-Income Country Debt Sustainability Framework (LIC-DSF) has been a cornerstone of debt sustainability analysis in IDA-eligible countries....

Building resilient infrastructure makes for more efficient and rewarding economics...

The election of Hakainde Hichilema as president ushered in a new era of credible, stable policies...