CAPE TOWN - Africa has the natural resources, like gas and oil, to sustain itself and can also provide it to the rest of the world.
It's only problem is leadership.
That’s the view of Mineral Resources and Energy Minister Gwede Mantashe, who addressed the Africa Oil Week conference in Cape Town on Tuesday.
Mantashe added that the EU’s decision to stop importing gas from Russia was an opportunity for Africa to earn her income through exports into Europe.
Minister Mantashe addressed the more than 1,000 delegates from over 80 countries about oil and gas being an enabler for better coordination in the continent.
Speaking off-the-cuff, Mantashe told delegates that the continent had enough resources to sustain itself while lamenting the continent’s leadership.
"You know Africa can feed itself and feed other continents and we are not. I’m submitting that it’s a leadership question. It’s not anything else, it’s a leadership question," Mantashe said.
Closer to home, Mantashe said that the South African government had to sell its fuel stock to ease rising costs because of the Ukraine conflict.
"And that is the fuel that we have sold to cushion the end consumer from the cost of rocketing fuel prices," the minister said.
The conference, which brings together governments, international oil companies and investors, ends on Friday.
