Abuja, Nigeria –
The Convener and Founder of the Africa Blue Economy Roundtable (ABER), Dr. Piriye Kiyaramo, has congratulated the Deputy Chairperson of the Women’s Forum and Director of Blue Sovereignty & Traditional Ocean Governance, HRH Queen Nosipho Mthembu, on her conferment of the Outstanding Pan-African Mining Sector Leader and Visionary Award – the highest honour at the Africa Mining Convention Awards (AMCA) in Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe.
The congratulatory message was contained in a statement issued by the Director of Communication & Public Affairs, Hajiya Medina Dauda Nadabo, in Abuja on Friday.
Dr. Kiyaramo described HRH Queen Mthembu as an invaluable asset to Africa, stating that her recognition is a testament to her ingenuity, visionary leadership and forward-looking enterprise in the blue economy.
Jury Citation
In its citation, the AMCA Jury stated: “On the sacred soil of Zimbabwe, a nation whose mineral wealth has shaped Pan-African history – the Africa Mining Convention Awards Jury proudly confers its highest honour on Her Royal Highness Queen Nosipho Mthembu.
In the land of Great Zimbabwe, built on gold and vision, we honour a Queen whose own vision has built bridges between mines and oceans, between policy and people, between wealth beneath the soil and prosperity in the community.
She is honoured for her outstanding Pan-African leadership in transforming how Africa governs its mineral resources – championing beneficiation over extraction, inclusion over exclusion, and community prosperity over enclave development.
Through her leadership at the ABER Women’s Forum and her pioneering concepts of the Africa Blue Ocean Economy Institute (ABOEI) and Pan-African Coastal Community College (PACC), she has given Africa a practical roadmap to domesticate the Africa Mining Vision and empower women and youth in mining communities from Durban to Lake Victoria to the Zambezi.
For embodying the spirit of Ubuntu in mining leadership and for making Zimbabwe proud as host of this historic recognition, she is hereby inducted into the Pan-African Mining Leaders Hall of Fame.”
About ABER’s Mandate and Scope
The Africa Blue Economy Roundtable (ABER) is a pan-African, multi-stakeholder platform established to accelerate the domestication and implementation of the African Union’s Africa Blue Economy Strategy, the Africa Mining Vision, Agenda 2063, the Lomé Charter on Maritime Security and Safety, and the UN Sustainable Development Goals, particularly SDG 14 – Life Below Water.
ABER’s broad mandate and scope cover four strategic pillars: Policy Advocacy and Institutional Alignment: Advocating for an integrated approach that merges mining, maritime, and ocean governance into one sustainable development framework. Inclusive Growth – Women and Youth at the Centre: Driving the AU’s agenda for inclusive growth through the ABER Women’s Forum and Youth in Blue Economy Initiative, with a deliberate focus on access to leadership, ownership, finance and markets for women and youth in coastal and mining communities.
Capacity Building, Research and Innovation: Through its knowledge institutions, ABER provides research, vocational training, and innovation in ocean governance, sustainable fisheries and aquaculture, green shipping, mineral beneficiation, and the preservation of traditional ocean knowledge systems.
Investment Facilitation and Community Prosperity: Promoting value addition and value retention through the REMAP AFRICA doctrine – moving Africa from exporting raw minerals to producing finished goods – under the principle of ‘From Pit to Port, From Mine to Market.’
Dr. Kiyaramo noted that HRH Queen Mthembu’s induction into the Pan-African Mining Leaders Hall of Fame affirms ABER’s integrated model as the future of Africa’s sustainable development.
In her acceptance remarks, HRH Queen Mthembu dedicated the honour to women in mining and coastal communities across Africa and to the people of Zimbabwe as host nation.
