As the world hurtles toward a future defined by clean energy, electric vehicles, artificial intelligence, and advanced defense technologies, the raw ingredients fueling this transformation are not just data and devices—they are minerals, water, food, and people. The future belongs to those who can master the sustainable management of these finite resources.
In the unfolding saga of 21st-century global power dynamics, ‘’REM’’ rare earth minerals have quietly taken center stage. These 17 elusive elements—hidden in the Earth’s crust—are driving the Fourth Industrial Revolution. They form the backbone of cutting-edge technologies such as electric vehicles, wind turbines, solar panels, defense equipment, and smartphones. Yet, behind their scientific obscurity lies a geopolitical chess game with profound consequences.
The Strategic Value of Rare Earth Minerals (REM)
Rare earth minerals (REMs) like neodymium, lanthanum, cerium, and dysprosium are not as scarce as the name suggests. But their mining, refining, and processing require highly sophisticated infrastructure and technical expertise. The world’s heavy reliance on REMs in renewable energy, electronics, and national defense systems has elevated them to a position of critical strategic importance.
The Mineral Awakening – Powering Tomorrow’s Technologies
Rare earth minerals such as lithium, cobalt, nickel, graphite, and neodymium are the new global power currency. These strategic materials are indispensable for EV batteries, semiconductors, 5G networks, military hardware, renewable energy systems, and satellite communications.
According to the International Energy Agency, global demand for rare earth and critical minerals could rise by 400–600% by 2040. Countries such as the United States, China, Australia, and the Democratic Republic of Congo are aggressively securing these resources through investment, mining, and trade control.
China’s Global Monopoly: 90% Market Control
Over the past two decades, China has carefully orchestrated its rise to dominate the global REM value chain. Currently, it controls nearly 90% of the global supply—from raw mining to high-purity processing. It is also heavily investing in education, with 39 universities running dedicated REM programs to ensure a sustainable and skilled talent pipeline.
In an unprecedented geopolitical maneuver, China banned the export of 12 key rare earth elements to the United States as a retaliatory response to Trump-era tariffs. This marked the first instance of any country using REM sanctions as a strategic weapon against the U.S.—a country that heavily relies on these minerals for its defense systems, semiconductor production, and high-tech industries.
The Silent War: Technology, Resources, and Sanctions
This confrontation has ignited a silent but strategic war—a battle not of arms, but of access. Western nations, alarmed by their dependence on China, are scrambling to secure alternative REM supply chains. Australia, Canada, and even some African nations are rapidly mobilizing exploration and processing efforts.
The U.S. Defense Department, for instance, has started funding local rare earth projects. The European Union is also prioritizing critical mineral strategies under its Green Deal Industrial Plan. The stakes are high. Whoever controls REMs controls innovation—and in turn, global influence.
Pakistan’s Untapped Treasure and Strategic Shift
Pakistan is sitting on immense untapped mineral wealth—especially in regions like Balochistan, home to one of the world’s largest undeveloped copper-gold mines: Reko Diq. In early 2025, Pakistan hosted the Minerals and Metals Investment Conference, signaling its serious intention to develop the mining sector.
At the conference, the government, supported by the military and private sector stakeholders, laid out the National Minerals Investment Policy 2025 and the National Mineral Harmonisation Framework. These initiatives aim to:
– Streamline licensing and ease investor entry
– Emphasize sustainable, water-efficient mining
– Ensure community benefit sharing
– Foster domestic refining and value-added exports
– Create green mining corridors and human capital development hubs
Pakistan is clear in its vision: it does not want to become a raw material exporter, but a value-added player in the global rare earth supply chain.
The Water Crisis – The Silent Emergency
While minerals are being unearthed, Pakistan is simultaneously sinking into a water emergency. With per capita water availability below 900 cubic meters, Pakistan is now one of the top ten most water-stressed nations. Climate change, glacier melt, groundwater depletion, urbanization, and poor water management are worsening the crisis.
Regions rich in minerals, such as Balochistan, are also the most water-deficient. The expansion of mining must therefore come with cutting-edge water conservation measures such as:
– Solar-powered desalination
– Tailings recycling and wastewater reuse
– Integrated Water Resource Management (IWRM)
Food Security – A Ticking Time Bomb
Over 90% of Pakistan’s water is used for agriculture. Yet, outdated irrigation techniques, monoculture practices, and climate disruptions are leading to falling yields and rising food insecurity. With 38% of the labor force dependent on agriculture, this presents both a social and economic threat.
There is a pressing need to modernize agriculture through:
– Climate-smart precision farming
– Crop rotation and drought-resistant seeds
– Drip irrigation and agro-solar integration
– Linking mining revenues to rural farming reform
Population Pressure – The Overlooked Dimension
While rare earth minerals, food, and water dominate the strategic discourse, one of the most critical—and often underestimated—challenges facing Pakistan is its explosive population growth. With a population surpassing 240 million, Pakistan ranks among the most populous countries in the world. This demographic explosion is a double-edged sword: it offers a vast labor force and potential market, but it also threatens to overwhelm the country’s limited resources and infrastructure.
The race for clean water, nutritious food, education, healthcare, and economic opportunities is intensifying. Pakistan’s per capita availability of natural resources—including land, water, and energy—is shrinking fast. Without targeted investments in human development, mass education, resource management, and skills enhancement, even the most abundant mineral reserves will become a liability rather than an asset.
The demographic challenge isn’t isolated—it compounds Pakistan’s already daunting internal vulnerabilities:
- A population growing at over 2% annually, adding millions of mouths to feed every year.
- Rapid urbanization, creating unplanned megacities that strain water, sanitation, housing, and transport systems.
- A youth bulge, with over 60% of the population under the age of 30, largely undereducated, underemployed, and underprepared for the demands of a modern economy.
- Worsening food and water insecurity, aggravated by climate change, outdated agricultural practices, and inefficient water use.
- Political and governance instability, creating investor uncertainty and slowing the pace of reform.
If Pakistan does not address the population challenge in parallel with mineral and environmental strategies, it risks falling into a resource curse—a paradox where natural wealth leads not to prosperity, but to conflict, inequality, and ecological collapse.
What Needs to Be Done?
If Pakistan is to benefit from the global REM revolution, immediate and aggressive action is required:
1. Launch a National REM Task Force to map, regulate, and develop this sector.
2. Introduce dedicated rare earth engineering and geology programs in universities.
3. Partner with friendly nations like Germany, Japan, or Turkey for tech transfer and joint ventures.
4. Digitize mineral data for transparency and protection from resource theft.
5. Establish a mining sustainability framework to ensure environmental and community protection.
The Way Forward – A National Resilience Strategy
Rather than treating minerals, water, food, and population separately, Pakistan must integrate them into a single national development strategy. A few cornerstones of this strategy should include:
– Strategic Resilience Funds: Invest mineral profits in food and water systems
– Triple Nexus Governance: Link mining, agriculture, and water authorities under one framework
– Skill Development: Train youth in mining engineering, hydrology, agro-tech, and environmental science
– Geopolitical Readiness: Build alliances with rare earth-consuming countries and diversify trade routes
From Crisis to Catalyst – The Century of Resilience
Pakistan’s rare earth revolution must not be seen as a stand-alone mineral surge—it must be embedded within a broader human development and national resilience agenda. The true value of mining lies not just beneath the earth but in what we build above it.
Mining revenues must be reinvested into:
- Education systems that foster scientific thinking and technical skills
- Healthcare and nutrition to support a productive, healthy population
- Vocational training to equip the youth for roles in green industries
- Digital literacy to prepare citizens for an increasingly data-driven economy
Only through inclusive growth, equitable resource distribution, and community participation can Pakistan transform its demographic pressure into demographic power. The resource-rich future must belong to all Pakistanis—not just a few.
The countries that will lead in the 21st century are not merely those endowed with rare minerals, but those that govern them wisely, process them cleanly, and share them justly. The global rare earth race is not just about extraction—it’s a test of sustainability, innovation, and leadership.
For Pakistan, the intersection of mineral opportunity, water scarcity, food insecurity, and a surging population is not a ticking time bomb—it is a once-in-a-century opportunity to reimagine its national destiny. Through smart policy, international partnerships, and local empowerment, Pakistan can turn this convergence of crises into a platform for renewal.
Let this be the century of minerals, but more importantly, let it be the century of balance, foresight, and resilience.
Because Pakistan does not just need a mineral revolution.
It needs a national transformation.
This exclusive article has been written by @asif-mehmood and published in Automark’s May-2025 printed/digital edition.