Business
African entrepreneurs taking control of their mines
Sam Jonah, Executive chairperson of Jonah Capital
The Africanization of executives has started, English-speaking groups continue in their dominance, as more and more entrepreneurs from the continent invest in some of Africa’s most promising sectors. But while they are yet to launch their own projects, they are acceding key executive positions.
“In the mining industry, only very few African entrepreneurs have launched our own companies”, Congolese Kalaa Mpinga, CEO of Mwana Africa laments. “While mineral resource remain the main source of wealth for some countries, there are almost no private African mining companies, except for those in Morocco or South Africa.”
His company, Mwana Africa was founded in 2003 and makes close to US$41 million from gold and nickel in both southern Africa and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Even though the English-speaking mining sector counts a few large contractors, such as Ghanaian Sam Jonah, the charismatic CEO of Ashanti Goldfields- which merged with Anglo Gold in 2004, or South Africa’s Patrice Motsepe, chairman of African Rainbow Minerals, entrepreneurs of this calibre are rare.