Africa’s mining value addition gets boost as Comfort Ogaji wins women in mining award

Africa’s push for mining value addition received a major boost in December as Comfort Asokoro Ogaji, Executive Director of Women in Mining Africa (WIM-A), emerged as the winner of the 2025 Women in Mining Award at the Resourcing Tomorrow Outstanding Achievement Awards and Gala in London.

The global award recognizes women shaping the future of the mining sector through leadership, innovation, community impact, and Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG)-driven reforms.

Ogaji was selected from a competitive pool of six finalists, including Amanda Lacaze, Managing Director of Lynas Rare Earths; Laura Tyler, former Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director of Adriatic Metals; Ingrid Hibbard, Chief Executive Officer of Pelangio Exploration; Michelle Keegan of Atrico and Robopalooza; and Ria Sanz, Senior Adviser at Marlow Global.

Her win places renewed spotlight on Africa’s push for downstream beneficiation, women-led value creation, and mining policy reforms.

As Executive Director of WIM-A, she has been leading programs on beneficiation labs across regions of Africa, women-owned cooperatives, climate-smart governance, critical minerals cooperation, and the proposed WIM Africa Institute for Leadership and Sustainable Mining.

In her acceptance remarks, Ogaji dedicated the award to women in mining and the host communities that sustain mineral development.

“This win is not mine alone. It is a win for African women in mining and for mining host community voices. It honours indigenous women and men who live where minerals are extracted and every woman keeping the wheel turning even when the world is not watching,” she said.

She added that Africa’s mining communities “deserve empowerment, opportunity, and value creation,” noting that the award reinforces the place of women “in boardrooms, exploration sites, beneficiation plants, investment spaces, and policy tables across the continent.”

Industry analysts at the London event described her recognition as a continental signal that Africa’s strategy on value addition, youth and women empowerment, and research-based sector reforms is gaining global endorsement. Her work currently spans 36 African countries.

The announcement was made in a statement by Antonia Nebo, Director of Operations and Secretariat Services, WIM-A, on Friday.

Ruth Tene, Assistant Editor, Agric/Solid Minerals/INEC

Ruth Tene is an award-winning journalist with over 15 years experience in developmental reporting across several newsrooms, as a reporter, editor and other managerial roles. She holds a Postgraduate Diploma in Journalism from the University of Maiduguri among several other certifications

She has attended several trainings and certifications both locally and internationally and has been recognized for her impactful work in humanitarian reporting, receiving the Gold Award for Humanitarian Services from the Amazing Grace Foundation. She is also a recipient of the Home Alliance Fellowship, reflecting her commitment to fostering a more humane, safer and more sustainable planet.

An active member of professional journalism bodies, Ruth is affiliated with the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), the National Association of Women Journalists (NAWOJ), and the Agricultural Correspondents Association of Nigeria (ACAN), where she continues to advocate for excellence, ethical reporting, and development-focused journalism.

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