The Marrakech Declaration: Toward an African ESG Framework for Mining

What you need to know

• The Marrakech Declaration, adopted at ICM Morocco 2025, is the first ESG framework designed specifically for the African mining industry.
• It builds on the OTC Corridor (Origination, Transit, Certification), launched in 2024 to strengthen mineral traceability, circulation, and certification across Africa.
• The framework addresses a recognised gap: international standards such as the IFC's and the EU CSDDD were designed for developed economies and inadequately account for African realities, including artisanal mining, customary land tenure, and limited administrative capacity.
• A technical secretariat, hosted by Morocco's mining ministry, will coordinate operations alongside a biannual oversight committee and a digital platform linking African producers with international buyers.
• Morocco ranks as the second most attractive African mining investment destination (Fraser Institute, 2025), reinforcing its credibility as a continental standard-setter.
• The Declaration aligns with domestic reforms, including Draft Law No. 72-24 on mining and Morocco's National Mining Strategy 2021–2030.
• Participation is voluntary, but the framework may evolve towards harmonised or binding standards.

What you need to do

• Monitor the framework's evolution: voluntary participation may shift towards more harmonised or binding obligations over time.
• Assess compliance interactions: evaluate how the African ESG framework aligns with existing obligations under international standards, including the EU CSDDD.
• Review supply chain processes: the OTC Corridor and digital platform may introduce new traceability and certification requirements affecting market access and financing.
• Track Moroccan legislative reform: Draft Law No. 72-24, once enacted, may reshape the regulatory landscape for mining in Morocco and influence continental standards.
• Consider strategic engagement: formal accession to the framework could affect access to international financing and partnerships with the EU and China.

Morocco is working hard to become a continental leader in mining governance — an ambition increasingly backed by market confidence as Morocco now ranks as the second most attractive African destination for mining investment and the 15th globally (Fraser Institute Annual Survey of Mining Companies, 2025). At the Morocco International Mining Congress (ICM Morocco 2025), the Moroccan Minister of Energy Transition and Sustainable Development, joined by several African mining ministers, adopted the Marrakech Declaration, presented as the first ESG framework designed specifically for the African mining industry. The Declaration is the latest milestone in a broader, Africa-led process in which Morocco has served as the principal driving force. It builds on the OTC Corridor (Origination, Transit, Certification), an initiative launched in Marrakech in 2024 to strengthen the traceability, circulation, and certification of minerals continent-wide. These initiatives are not isolated: they form part of a coherent strategy to build an integrated governance architecture linking traceability, ESG compliance, and market access across the continent.

The Declaration also aligns with Morocco's domestic reform agenda. Draft Law No. 72-24, currently under legislative review, was introduced in 2024 to replace Law No. 33-13 on mining, aiming to enhance investor attractiveness and ensure compliance with international standards. These parallel efforts — continental standard-setting and national legal modernisation — underscore Morocco's intent to champion more ethical and responsible exploitation of the continent's vast natural resources. This ambition is reinforced by Morocco's broader green transition minerals (GTM) strategy, leveraging the country's substantial reserves of phosphate, cobalt, manganese, lithium and copper to attract investment from both the EU and China. Morocco's National Mining Strategy 2021–2030 aims to double the sector's GDP contribution by transitioning from raw material exports to processing and manufacturing. The Marrakech Declaration and the OTC Corridor can be seen as the continental extension of this domestic industrial policy — projecting Morocco's governance model outward while anchoring its credibility through internal reform.

The African ESG Framework responds to a longstanding industry concern: prevailing international standards, including the IFC's and the EU's Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive, were largely conceived for developed economies and often inadequately account for African mining realities — from artisanal and small-scale operations to customary land tenure systems and disparities in administrative capacity. This disconnect can exclude operators from meeting compliance thresholds, restricting access to international financing. The proposed framework seeks to bridge this gap with standards better calibrated to the African context in environmental stewardship, corporate responsibility, and community engagement.

On governance, the Declaration establishes a structured institutional architecture. A technical secretariat, to be hosted by Morocco's Ministry in charge of mining, will coordinate operations, supported by biannual oversight committee. A dedicated digital platform is also envisaged, serving as a central registry for certification processes and facilitating direct linkages between African mineral producers and international buyers.

Participation remains voluntary, with states encouraged to formally accede. Questions persist regarding the rollout timeline and whether the framework may evolve toward more harmonised, or even binding, standards. For mining sector participants with African exposure, the Declaration warrants close monitoring. Morocco's determination to anchor ESG governance on the continent — supported by its growing investor attractiveness, GTM strategy, and deepening EU and China partnerships — signals a potentially transformative shift in how African mining is regulated, financed, and perceived globally.

This article was originally published in The Legal Industry Reviews: Morocco 2nd Edition. You can find the article here.