The environmental transition has renewed the links between raw materials and industrialization, says a policy brief from the Policy Center For The New South (PCNS).
“The historical links between raw materials and the industrialization of nations are well known, but the environmental transition has certainly renewed them”writes Yves Jégourel, the author of this Policy Brief, published under the title “Environmental transition, raw materials and industrialization: what synergies to engage? “.
“Synonymous with a sharp increase in demand for copper, nickel, cobalt, lithium or, in a non-exhaustive way, for certain rare earths, it constitutes a unique opportunity to develop metallurgical industries within developing countries or emerging countries that have it”says Yves Jégourel, Senior Fellow at the PCNS and University Professor at the University of Bordeaux.
Symmetrically, the imperative to decarbonize economies involves the development of electromobility and the permanent reinforcement of renewable energies, notes Yves Jégourel, adding that the industrial changes that these two trends impose pose a risk of supply, or even scarcity, for many industrialized countries which have, in return, developed security strategies.
“Regardless of the relevance of the national policies carried out by these exporting or importing nations, there is here a strong issue of cooperation between nations which, probably, goes beyond the framework of bilateral negotiations”observes the expert.
While the fight against global warming is naturally the priority object of the COPs and must remain so, international consultation on the gradual withdrawal of fossil fuels and the development of these minerals and metals in a low-carbon world must be initiated” , concludes Yves Jégourel.
The Policy Center for the New South (PCNS) is a Moroccan think tank whose mission is to contribute to the improvement of public policies, both economic and social and international, which concern Morocco and Africa, integral parts of the South global.
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