6. African Mining and the SDGs: From Vision to Reality

Prior to the adoption of the sustainable development goals (SDGs), the African Mining Vision set out a roadmap for mineral development to drive human development across the region. The vision was based on an assumption that under the right policy and regulatory regimes, mining could contribute to development by delivering significant revenues and economic linkages. This assumption has been tested in relation to the SDGs at a global level in the report on Mining and the SDGs: A preliminary atlas. The report is a joint effort of the United Nations Development Programme, the World Economic Forum, the Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment and the Sustainable Development Solutions Network. This chapter focuses on the potential contribution of the mining industry to the attainment of the SDGs in Africa. The potential contribution of both large-scale formal mining and artisanal and small-scale mining to sustainable development is considered. We find that while some of the major global mining companies are able to show a contribution to the SDGs through specific projects in Africa, it is more challenging to implement, scale-up and measure the impact of the SDGs’ framework for the industry as a whole.