‘But we are a rich nation!': the persistent extractivist development myth in Algeria and Venezuela

The global push for decarbonisation has intensified demand for critical raw materials, reinforcing long-standing narratives in the Global South that natural wealth guarantees national growth and development. This article conceptualises the extractivist development myth, an enduring, adaptable belief linking resource abundance to socio-economic gains and progress, and examines its operationalisation in Algeria and Venezuela. Based on fieldwork and through a transregional political economy approach, it shows how the myth has legitimised state authority, policymaking and public expectations. Despite constant diversification rhetoric, extractivist logics persist and are now reframed around ‘green’ resources. The article highlights, therefore, how national imaginaries sustain extractivist models, entrenching uneven development amid the energy transition.