Gulf countries are becoming major players in Africa
African leaders hope the Gulf is the “new China”. Not quite
Mining Indaba, Africa’s biggest mining conference, is a geological jamboree. But the latest bash, held in Cape Town in February, was also a geopolitical spectacle. For as well as the usual Chinese and Western firms there were arrivistes from the Gulf. Manara Minerals, a state-backed Saudi Arabian fund, has up to $15bn to spend on foreign mines. Also browsing is the International Holding Company, an Emirati conglomerate with a market capitalisation of $240bn, around that of Blackrock and BP combined; in November its minerals arm bought a 51% stake in a Zambian copper mine.
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This article appeared in the Middle East & Africa section of the print edition under the headline “Out of Arabia”
From the March 16th 2024 edition
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