Artificial intelligence is reshaping the search for mineral deposits, offering African countries an opportunity to accelerate discoveries and compete more effectively for global exploration capital, Ghana Chamber of Mines Chief Executive Officer Kenneth Ashigbey said.
By Ryan Chigoche
Addressing delegates at the Chamber of Mines of Zimbabwe annual conference, Ashigbey said the industry is entering a new era where data, predictive analytics, and digital technologies will increasingly determine where the next generation of mineral discoveries is made.
“The mining industry of the future will belong not only to those with the largest mineral deposits, but also to those who deploy technology most effectively to optimise mineral resource discovery, extraction, and efficient recovery,” Ashigbey said.
The shift comes as African governments compete to attract investment into critical minerals needed for the global energy transition. Although the continent holds about 30% of the world’s mineral reserves, it attracts less than 15% of global exploration spending, highlighting both the scale of its untapped geological potential and the challenge of securing exploration capital.
Ashigbey argued that reversing that trend begins with exploration, describing it as the foundation of a sustainable mining industry.
“Exploration is the oxygen of mining. Without exploration, reserves decline. Without reserves, investment dries up. Without investment, the industry stagnates.”
Artificial intelligence is rapidly changing that equation. By analysing vast geological datasets in a fraction of the time required by conventional methods, AI allows exploration companies to identify promising mineral targets more quickly, reduce drilling risk, and lower the cost of discovery. Technologies such as machine learning, geospatial analytics, drone mapping, and predictive modelling are already transforming how exploration programmes are planned and executed.
For Africa, however, the opportunity extends beyond simply adopting these technologies. Ashigbey urged governments, universities, mining companies, and technology firms to work together to develop AI solutions tailored to African geology and operating conditions.
“Africa must not be merely a consumer of these technologies,” he said. “We must become creators of them.”
Drawing on his background in telecommunications, Ashigbey said digital capability is becoming as important to mining competitiveness as traditional infrastructure. Data, cybersecurity, and artificial intelligence, he argued, are now central to the industry’s future, with digital tools already helping to detect illegal mining, improve mineral traceability, strengthen environmental monitoring, and support more efficient exploration.
Even so, technology cannot replace sound mining policy.
Countries seeking exploration investment must still provide transparent licensing systems, secure mineral tenure, reliable geological data, and predictable regulation. Combined with advances in artificial intelligence, those fundamentals can reduce investment risk and improve the chances of new discoveries.
