Discussions in this chapter may have to be prefaced with the identification of the group of natural resources categorized here as “solid minerals.” Put simply, these are resources whose finished products come in solid form. Included here are natural resources such as copper, diamonds, gold, and iron. Two considerations justify a separate discussion of this class of natural resources. First, some of them, notably diamonds, have featured prominently in many of Africa's recent conflicts, making them perhaps the most controversial natural resource in the continent's post-Cold War conflicts. Second these resources evoke peculiar characteristics in their recent linkage with conflict, particularly because of their association with a number of post-Cold War security developments, including the reintroduction of foreign mercenaries, the increasing prominence of warlords' activities, and the deep involvement of external actors, especially multinational corporations and international nongovernmental organizations, in African civil conflicts.

In this chapter, I discuss how solid minerals have been linked to recent African conflicts. The central argument in the chapter is that this class of mineral resources has assumed the negative reputation it has because the structures of governance have not taken into consideration how the ease of the disposability of these resources and their high profit margins could attract the attention of an array of interest groups, including armed groups, international business interests, political elites, criminal gangs, local and international civil society, and multinational corporations, to encourage and sustain conflicts.