Home Blog
How Kenya’s mega wind power project is hurting communities
Kenya recently launched the Lake Turkana Wind Power project, Africa’s largest wind energy project and the biggest public-private investment in Kenyan history. The wind farm will produce 300MW of low-cost renewable energy for Kenya’s national grid.
Kenya...
How agriculture can be intensified in Africa without causing harm
Sustainable agriculture is a popular concept. It’s warmly embraced as a guiding light for the future of food production. But there is still a great deal of disagreement about what the concept actually means and...
Africa can get more from its minerals by building industries to service mines
Multinational firms from Europe, North America and more recently China still dominate the extraction and refining of most of minerals mined in Africa with minimal roles for African firms. From these minerals, foreign manufacturing firms produce...
Communities, mining corporations and corruption in South Africa
During the apartheid era in South Africa, the mining industry operated without restraint and had undue influence over government decision-making. This created an environment where companies maximised profits at the expense of people and...
B-BBEE deal results in Jet Demolition achieving a Level 4 rating
Specialist demolition contractor Jet Demolition has officially concluded a Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment (B-BBEE) deal that has resulted in it achieving a Level 4 B-BBEE rating, and 54% black ownership. In terms of the...
The way that minerals are mined affects conflict in eastern Congo
Strong evidence links the mining of minerals to local conflict in several African countries. This is because minerals are prized by rebel groups and are a source of their financing. Examples include the “blood...
Why South Africa can’t make a massive shift to renewables – yet
There’s a lively debate raging in South Africa about the extent to which renewables should replace coal, particularly given the threat of climate change. The country’s electricity supply is currently highly dependent on coal....
Southern Africa’s retrenched miners face a future without health care
Two of the world’s mining heavyweights have announced production cuts and staff cutbacks. These moves by BHP Billiton and Anglo American will have a major impact on efforts to contain TB and HIV as mining houses have become...
Investors push for positive global change in tailings management
Tailings are a sand-like byproduct of mining that results from crushing the ore before mineral extraction. Often, tailings are disposed of in dams built with tailings themselves, or with other mine waste products. The...
How new energy technologies can help South Africa ease its energy crunch
Energy is an economic driver of both developed and developing countries. South Africa over the past few years has faced an energy crisis with rolling blackouts between 2008 and 2015. Part of the problem...
