Minerals Must Benefit Countries, Communities, Not Finance Criminals, Conflict, Security Council Hears during Day-Long Debate on Natural-Resources Governance

By R Anil Kumar

• From lithium to nickel: How the UN is helping countries make the most of critical minerals

• The world’s shift to clean energy is driving huge demand for critical minerals such as lithium, nickel, cobalt and copper.

• Digging them out of the ground may be the most straightforward part of the process

• Around the world, the United Nations is helping countries make sure these valuable resources create decent jobs, protect the environment and benefit local communities – not just global supply chains

New York/Bengaluru, July 22, 2026. Countries and communities, especially in resource-rich Africa, must benefit most from the minerals in their own backyards, speakers affirmed on July 22, at a Security Council debate on “Natural resources governance:  the foundation of peace, security and prosperity”.

The demand for critical energy transition minerals such as lithium, cobalt, nickel and rare earth elements is set to almost triple by 2030.  In its March briefing on energy, critical minerals and security, the Council heard that mining has been linked to human rights abuses and conflict.

Ministers and delegates stressed the importance of ensuring that these resources support development, even as they differed on what resource governance should look like.

UN Secretary-General António Guterres drew attention to how revenues from illicit exploitation are pushing peace out of reach — “by strengthening armed and criminal actors, connecting local violence to regional and international networks and weakening incentives for political compromise”.  He spotlighted — as did many speakers today — illegal mining and smuggling in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Sudan.

“It is time to break the age-old pattern — where resources are extracted, value is captured elsewhere, and impoverished communities are left behind to cope with the environmental and socioeconomic damage,” he said.  He also pointed to the “sovereignty deficit” in many resource-rich countries, especially in Africa, due to colonialism and governance challenges.

Value-Added Production Is Peacebuilding by Another Name

“Good natural resource governance is peacebuilding by another name”, said Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Director-General of the World Trade Organization (WTO).  She, too, stressed the need to move from extraction to value creation, calling local processing and value-added industries “a peacebuilding imperative”.

With Africa’s share of global trade still below 3 per cent, value-added production, rules-based trade and African-led industrial cooperation can help ensure that critical minerals support development. “This is our chance to replace the vicious circle of the ‘resource curse’ with the virtuous circle of the ‘resource blessing’” she said.

A diamond can either fund a classroom or fuel a militia, Liberia’s delegate observed.  “Geology does not choose — governance does,” he added.  His country knows this because the Council acted against the timber and diamonds that fuelled its civil conflict by adopting Council resolution 1521 (2003). Subsequently, through national reform and international frameworks like the Kimberley Process, “those same resources became the bedrock of our economic recovery”, he said.

Spotlight on Existing Resource-Governance Frameworks

Many existing frameworks came up today, with Somalia’s delegate describing the African Mining Vision as a “continental framework for transparent, equitable and optimal exploitation”.

MutibaLuwabelwa, Executive Secretary of the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region, highlighted its regional certification mechanism for tin, tantalum, tungsten and gold.

Noting the more than 33,000 certifications issued to miners in the Democratic Republic of the Congo alone over the past few years, he underscored that “credible traceability systems, harmonized standards and strong political commitment” can work together.

Tete Antonio, Angola’s Minister for External Relations, pointed to the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD)’s Due Diligence Guidance, as he urged greater use of technology to enhance accountability.

During the civil war in Sierra Leone, that country’s speaker said, the illicit exploitation of diamonds financed armed groups.  He acknowledged the importance of the Kimberly Process, the African Mining Vision and his country’s Sovereign Mineral Wealth Fund.  However, gaps remain, he said, expressing support for a wider, stronger international governance framework grounded in the principle of equitable benefit-sharing.

Latvia’s representative noted that the Kimberley Process has not been able “to address how Russia’s diamonds are funding its war” against Ukraine, and added that existing frameworks must “remain fit for purpose”.

Threats to peace don’t always come “bearing a flag or a declaration of war”, Panama’s speaker said.  Sometimes, they lurk along a smuggling route or behind a mine controlled by illicit actors. The Council must view natural resources not as a peripheral issue, but as “one of the major governance challenges” of the century.  Roberto KuryPesantes, Ecuador’s Minister for Foreign Affairs and Human Mobility, highlighted his country’s “total offensive” against organized crime, narco-terrorism and illegal mining, launched last June.

Time for New International Doctrine

“Our country is among the richest in the world in natural resources,” said Thérèse Kayikwamba Wagner, Minister for Foreign Affairs, International Cooperation and Francophonie of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Council President for July.

But resources that should finance development have instead fuelled conflict.

Calling for a new international doctrine based on the conviction that natural resources are assets that carry shared responsibilities, she outlined six principles:  effective respect for the permanent sovereignty of States over their natural resources; responsibility to guarantee the lawful use of resources that will power the future; traceability and accountability throughout supply chains; the fight against economic impunity; equitable partnerships; and governance that protects communities living in extraction zones.

The United States’ representative highlighted the Washington Accords between the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Rwanda, describing it as a “historic opportunity to unlock lasting security and prosperity for the people of the Great Lakes region” by creating conditions for greater investment.  Further, the Lobito Corridor, which links the Democratic Republic of the Congo to Angola’s Atlantic port of Lobito, will create new trade opportunities with the United States and Europe.

The European Union’s representative, speaking in its capacity as observer, drew attention to the bloc’s restrictions on imports of Sudanese gold, as well as its Conflict Minerals Regulation, which promotes responsible sourcing of tin, tantalum, tungsten and gold.

In Sudan, “gold trafficking fuels the war economy”, France’s delegate noted.  He highlighted the role of sanctions in curbing such actions by armed groups.

Denmark’s delegate echoed that, noting that similar dynamics have played out in Myanmar, Colombia, Afghanistan, Iraq and Syria.

State Sovereignty over Natural Resources

China’s representative, however, warned that conflicts are complex and resources are not their only drivers.  Economic trade and industrial cooperation must not fall victim to “sweeping securitization, politicization or instrumentalization”, he said, stressing:  “Certain countries should cease using pressure, sanctions and military coercion to seize resources from other countries.”

The Russian Federation’s delegate said there is no “universal model of natural-resource governance that is equally suitable for everyone”, rejecting an approach whereby State sovereignty over natural resources can only be realized subject to some form of good governance.  Noting that 20 African economies depend on exports of unprocessed minerals, he said the continued extraction of raw materials from Global South countries demonstrates that decolonization has not truly taken place.

Securing Global Supply Chains, Development Rights of Producing Countries

Abdulla Balalaa, Assistant Minister for Foreign Affairs for Energy and Sustainability of the United Arab Emirates, said its engagement with partner countries supports national priorities and long-term value.  Speakers for Bahrain, Greece and the United Kingdom called for strong governance, traceability and benefit-sharing to turn resource wealth into a foundation for peace.

Jasem Mohamed AlBudaiwi, Secretary General of the Gulf Cooperation Council, said: “The governance of natural resources cannot be separated from the security of global supply chains,” and warned against any attacks on maritime shipping routes.  Constant-Serge Bounda, Minister for Foreign Affairs, Francophonie and Congolese abroad of Republic of Congo, highlighted the need for afforestation, reforestation and ecosystem-restoration initiatives.

“Our archipelago was once the epicentre of a global scramble,” said Arrmanatha Christiawan Nasir, Indonesia’s Vice-Minister for Foreign Affairs, recalling how the spice race has given way to competition for nickel and cobalt.  “Whom does this wealth actually serve?”, he asked, stressing that, while trade, investment and cooperation are essential, producing countries must be allowed to move beyond supplying raw materials.

“We cannot again allow the [Global South] to once again bear the environmental and social costs of extraction,” said Irene Vélez Torres, Colombia’s Acting Minister for Environment and Sustainable Development.  “We need to move towards geopolitical justice in the governance of these minerals.”

In brief – natural resource governance

In a day-long debate, the Security Council discussed how natural-resource governance can promote peace, security and prosperity, as global demand for critical minerals such as lithium, cobalt, nickel and rare earth elements is projected to nearly triple by 2030.

Speakers warned that the illicit exploitation of minerals continues to finance armed groups, organized crime and conflict, particularly in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Sudan.

UN Secretary-General António Guterres argued that revenues from illegal mining and smuggling strengthen violent actors and undermine political stability, while World Trade Organization Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala called local processing and value-added production a “peacebuilding imperative.”