Lithium Diplomacy and Economic Security: Zimbabwe’s Critical Minerals Strategy in the Global Energy Transition
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.64754/thedyke.v20i1.722Keywords:
minerals diplomacy, economic security, ESG, Zimbabwe lithium, beneficiation, energy transitionAbstract
This paper theorises Zimbabwe’s emergent lithium strategy as a form of critical minerals diplomacy situated at the nexus of economic security, ESG governance, and strategic statecraft within the global energy transition. It argues that lithium is being reconstituted from a passive geological endowment into a geopolitical instrument through which the state seeks to renegotiate its position in asymmetrical battery value chains. This repositioning is operationalised through an evolving regulatory architecture comprising export bans, strategic mineral designation, mandatory beneficiation, and targeted fiscal instruments aimed at internalising value and disciplining capital. Moving beyond binary interpretations of resource nationalism and developmental statism, the paper conceptualises Zimbabwe’s approach as a hybrid strategy of constrained resource sovereignty, pursued under conditions of structural dependence on foreign capital, technological externalities, infrastructural deficits, and price volatility in global lithium markets. Empirically, the study traces a sequenced policy trajectory from the 2022 ban on unprocessed lithium exports to the 2026 suspension of both raw mineral and concentrate exports, demonstrating escalating regulatory assertiveness and recalibrated state–capital relations. The analysis situates Zimbabwe’s lithium diplomacy within broader economic security debates shaped by rising demand, declining prices, and the geographic concentration of refining capacity. It argues that while regulatory escalation enhances bargaining power and discursive sovereignty, it does not guarantee structural transformation. Effective lithium diplomacy requires complementary capabilities, including energy reliability, logistics integration, contractual transparency, institutional credibility, technological learning, and inclusive stakeholder governance aligned with ESG imperatives. The paper concludes that without systemic capacity deepening, Zimbabwe risks entrenching enclave extraction under a more interventionist regime, thereby reproducing patterns of externalised value capture rather than achieving durable economic security.
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