Mineral Resources and Development
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This series aggregates and presents the World Bank`s knowledge on oil, gas, and mining in an accessible format. It is meant to assist knowledge sharing and trigger policy dialogue on topics relevant to managing natural resource wealth sustainably and responsibly. The series is produced by the Extractive Industries Unit of the World Bank. The unit serves as a global technical adviser that supports sustainable development by building capacity and providing extractive industry sector-related advisory services to resource-rich developing countries.
Items in this collection
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Publication
The Contribution of the Mining Sector to Socioeconomic and Human Development
(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2014-04)Many low and middle-income mineral-rich countries have experienced strong growth for a decade or longer, propelled by a rapid expansion of their mineral exports and a rise in prices of these commodities. This sustained strong economic performance goes against the accepted wisdom that even though the mining sector, like other extractive industries, can generate foreign exchange and fiscal revenues, it contributes little to sustained economic growth and, by extension, human development. Through the presentation of trends and patterns of various indicators, this paper shows that in addition to economic growth, countries rich in minerals other than oil have experienced significant improvements in their human development index (HDI) scores that are on average better than those experienced by countries without minerals. In a sample of five low and middle-income countries with relatively long histories of mining, benefits came from foreign direct investment (FDI), export revenues, and fiscal revenues. The overall impact of the mining sector was much stronger if there were infrastructure benefits and strong linkages to other industries, especially through domestic procurement. Contrary to the notion that there are no jobs in mining, in this small sample, employment related to the mining sector was very high in countries where linkages were strong, even before the multiplier and fiscal expenditure impacts were accounted for. Cooperation between the public and private sectors seemed essential to increasing such linkages. In addition, mining firms often made substantial contributions to local and regional development, at times due to legal requirements but often not. All five countries have either relatively high HDIs (compared with neighboring countries) or strongly improving HDIs. -
Publication
Innovative Approaches for Multi-Stakeholder Engagement in the Extractive Industries
(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2013-06)Extractive industries (oil, gas, and mining) have the potential to generate significant wealth for developing countries and to serve as important catalysts for growth. They generate large revenues-through royalties, taxation, and exports-and create employment. In some cases, however, resource wealth is associated with political turmoil, deteriorating standards of living, civil conflict, and elite capture. The management's response to the Extractive Industries Review (EIR) and accompanying evaluations signaled a critical turning point in the World Bank Group's (WBG's) engagement in the sector, which had hitherto focused primarily on exploration and development activities, sector policy reform, and commercialization of state-owned enterprises. This publication presents four of the finalist case studies, selected on the basis of project: 1) scalability; 2) replicability; 3) innovation; and 4) level of multi-stakeholder collaboration. In an effort to better document and showcase the variety of ways in which country teams are working with different actors on the often sensitive topic of good governance in the oil, gas, and mining sectors, the World Bank Institute and the World Bank Oil, Gas and Mining Unit (SEGOM) initiated an internal case story competition in 2011. -
Publication
Implementing EITI at the Sub National Level : Emerging Experience and Operational Framework
(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2011-10)The fundamental rationale behind Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) is that increased transparency and knowledge of revenues from the extractive industries will empower citizens and institutions to hold governments accountable. By implementing EITI at the sub national level, countries could reduce opportunities for mismanagement or diversion of funds from sustainable development purposes, especially for prominent oil, gas, or mining regions. It is also an effective way of strengthening EITI local ownership among stakeholders. This report presents a preliminary analysis of emerging experiences in EITI countries implementing sub national EITI. Six countries have been selected as case studies: Ghana, Indonesia, Mongolia, Nigeria, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), and Peru. Based on these experiences, the report proposes a common operational framework for implementing EITI at the sub national level, laying the ground for further practical guidelines on deepening or strengthening the sub national plans or activities of implementing countries. -
Publication
Overview of State Ownership in the Global Minerals Industry : Long Term Trends and Future
(Washington, DC, 2011)This study builds on a previous study from the raw materials group, a Sweden-based minerals consultancy, originally commissioned by the World Bank in 2008. The trend toward more state engagement in the mining industry as noted in the 2008 study has continued, based on more recent developments. This study includes an expanded section on the new forms of state control which are found in Africa and also in Russia, China, India, and other emerging economies. It lays out the possible political implications of these trends and draws lessons from previous periods of increasing state ownership, including how to avoid previous mistakes. Various metals and the history of nationalization in a number of countries are analyzed as are the possible factors influencing the decision to nationalize, such as the sector's strategic importance and the need to control it. China's role in investing in Africa is discussed noting the issues concerning negotiation strategies, looking at the history of deals made in Sub-Saharan Africa. State ownership is defined in detail in appendix one of this document. A consolidated list of state ownership in mining of selected minerals and mineral refining on which the study is based is presented in appendix two. -
Publication
The World Bank's Evolutionary Approach to Mining Sector Reform
(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2010-10)In this report, in addition to aggregate results, six brief case studies are used to highlight the impact of Bank supported mining sector reform on various indicators at different links of the value chain. These include: the impacts on investment; production and employment in Argentina; institutional capacity building in Papua New Guinea; production and fiscal revenues in Tanzania; community and regional development in Madagascar; mining sector reform and sustainable development in Mongolia; and mining and resource corridors in Liberia. The reforms of the 1990s and early 2000s, which focused on increasing investment and building regulatory capacity, have often had spectacular results with respect to investment and good results with respect to institution building. The work on increasing the efficiency and transparency of fiscal regimes has also achieved significant success, although it is still too early to make a final assessment. While the mining sector-specific aspects of the management and allocation of fiscal revenues are still in early days, there do seem to have been important impacts on poverty reduction and sustainable development in a number of countries that have undergone mining reform, although there has been an insufficient passage of time to make definitive judgments. -
Publication
Expenditure of Low-Income Households on Energy : Evidence from Africa and Asia
(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2010-06)Patterns of household energy use and expenditure have been the subject of a large number of studies. Household expenditures on energy-particularly, how much the poor spend-have policy implications for several reasons. First, policies to mitigate or cope with energy price shocks are increasingly focusing on targeted support to low-income households as a way of limiting the fiscal cost of such policies while offering protection to the most vulnerable members of society. Second, for governments looking to reform energy price subsidies, the effects on household welfare- especially effects on poor households-of price increases resulting from subsidy reduction/removal is an important policy consideration. But subsidies for liquid fuels targeting the poor are difficult to design and implement effectively, because liquid fuels tend to be used more by the rich than by the poor, and are also easy to transport (and hence to divert to non-poor users). For this reason, there is a growing recognition of the need to move away from price subsidies for liquid fuels to alternative forms of targeted assistance to compensate the poor for the adverse effects of higher fuel prices. Third, in areas where many households have not yet begun using modern commercial energy regularly, the amount they can afford to pay for such energy services is a relevant question. Quantifying expenditures on different types of energy at varying income levels provides a basis for addressing these questions. The paper also examines expenditures on motorized passenger transport and food, two items for which the price of oil is an important component of their cost structure and which are consequential in the budget of poor households. -
Publication
Petroleum Markets in Sub-Saharan Africa : Analysis and Assessment of 12 Countries
(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2010-03)This regional study takes twelve oil-importing countries in Sub-Saharan Africa and asks the following two questions: does each stage in the supply chain, from import of crude oil or refined products to retail, seem to be efficiently run and are the efficiency gains passed on to end-users? And if not, what are the potential causes and possible means of remedying the problems? The study focuses on Burkina Faso, Cote d'Ivoire, Mali, Niger, and Senegal in West Africa and Botswana, Kenya, Madagascar, Malawi, South Africa, Tanzania, and Uganda in East and Southern Africa, covering a wide range of conditions that affect price levels, such as the market size, geography (whether landlocked or coastal), existence of domestic refineries, degree of sector liberalization including pricing, and level of economic development. -
Publication
The Aluminum Industry in West and Central Africa : Lessons Learned and Prospects for the Future
(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2009-12)The purpose of this working paper is to evaluate the future of the aluminum industry in West and Central Africa, with a focus on aluminum smelting and its relationship with power generation and availability in the regions. The organization of this study is as follows. It continues with an overview of the global aluminum industry, including a description of the production process, current and projected supply and demand, and the most important cost considerations for companies investing in the industry. Chapter two provides a brief history and future prospects for the aluminum sector in West and Central Africa. Chapter three contains an analysis of the viability of the two most important existing smelters in the regions, Valco in Ghana and Alucam in Cameroon, as well as a briefer analysis of Alscon in Nigeria and the potential for other smelters in the regions. In chapter four, the recent experience of the three large aluminum smelters in southeast Africa is reviewed and lessons are extracted for West and Central Africa. Conclusions and recommendations are in chapter five. -
Publication
Changes in CO2 Emissions from Energy Use : A Multicountry Decomposition Analysis
(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2009-10)The continued growth of global emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2) and their likely adverse effects on global warming are focusing debate on the contribution of various countries to total emissions and the comparability of efforts across countries in mitigating these emissions. This paper examines recent trends in CO2 emissions across countries at different levels of development and asks what has been contributing to the growth of emissions as well as to their moderation. The paper applies a decomposition analysis, an accounting methodology based on a log mean Divisia index, to analyze the change in CO2 emissions over a decade. -
Publication
Gender Dimensions of the Extractive Industries : Mining for Equity
(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2009-08)Extractive industries (EI) impacts can be positive and negative, spanning economic, social, and environmental issues. Oil, gas, and mining projects may create jobs, but may also consume farming land for their use, changing livelihoods and limiting access to water, food, and firewood. Water sources may become polluted, but new roads may be built and communities may become electrified. Markets may boom, but prices may rise steeply. Given male and female relationships to each other, to the economy, to the land, and to their communities, men and women have very different experiences of these EI impacts, and evidence increasingly demonstrates that in general women are more vulnerable to the risks, with little access to the benefits. This publication presents how and why men and women are differently impacted by EI, exploring what the implications are for business and development, and providing policy and action suggestions for how to mitigate negative impacts and amplify positive ones and how to monitor and improve results. The publication focuses primarily on larger scale commercial operations but also considers some of the issues relating to artisan and small-scale mining (ASM). The report is addressed to the stakeholders in extractive industries, i.e., oil, gas, and mining development and operations community members and leaders; government officials; and managers and staff of EI companies.