Introduction

The mining industry in Africa has undergone a metamorphosis since the 1970s driven by many global political economic ideologies and trends. One of such ideologies is the United Nation’s Permanent Sovereignty over Natural Resources (PSoNR), which solidified the vesting of mineral assets in the State in Africa. This introductory chapter sets the tone for the book by broaching the theme of PSoNR with the evolution of land ownership and mining in Africa. In most legal dispensations, ownership of vested interests in minerals mean that land rights and sometimes the user rights asserted under customary land law are terminated. The sovereignty’s right to minerals asserted under PSoNR may come at the expense of community interest and their sustainable development (SD) objectives. Hence, the chapter presents issues of SD and the ‘right to development’ as an extension of PSoNR, discussing who should benefit in mining communities, and how SD instruments such as local content and corporate social responsibility if amplified can enhance miner’s social licence to operate and the holistic development of communities. Finally, the structure is laid out describing how each chapter feeds into the broader themes explored in the book.