Marit Kitaw – Economic Affairs Office, United Nations Economic Commision for Africa, Ethiopia
The 10th anniversary edition of African Power & Energy Elites recognises the people shaping the continent’s future infrastructure
As the former interim director of the African Union’s African Minerals Development Centre (AMDC) and currently at the UNECA, Dr Marit Kitaw leads the work on Africa’s minerals for sustainable development, with a priority on building coherent regional value chains that accelerate a just, climate-aligned industrialisation pathway.
Her career has unfolded in rooms where priorities seldom align, and political transitions arrive faster than institutional memory can keep up.
Dr Kitaw describes these environments as “formative“, teaching her disciplined patience and the art of anticipating alternative futures.
Years spent navigating governments, civil society groups, private investors, researchers, artisanal miners, women’s network and youth movements have instilled a belief that durable progress begins long before solutions.
“You must build coalitions first,” she reflects, “and find leverage points that create the greatest ripple.”
That philosophy has become even more essential as the world races to secure Africa’s minerals for a low-carbon future.
Cover photo
