By Ikechukwu Okaforadi
As a measure to curb economic sabotage resulting from illegal mining of precious stones and solid minerals, the Federal Government yesterday issued new directives to regulate the activities in the sector, in which it also slammed a 30-day ultimatum to all illegal miners in the country to join cooperative societies or face the full wrath of the law.
The Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dele Alake, gave the ultimatum at a press conference on Sunday in Abuja, where he also unveiled President Bola Ahmed Tínubu’s renewed hope agenda for the sector.
According to Alake, activities of illegal miners, in addition to inefficient geo-data, weak implementation and enforcement, poor environmental, safety, and health policies, fragility and conflict, low technical capacity, lack of access to financing, amongst others were severe barriers to the development of the sector.
“For the last time, let me declare that the Ministry is giving such persons 30 days grace to join a miners’ co-operative or find another vocation to do. On the expiration of the period, the full weight of the law will fall on anyone seen on a mining site without a determinable status.
“This message will be interpreted into Nigerian languages and broadcast on the radio to ensure no one is ignorant of this directive,” he said.
Alake stated that to attain the transformation agenda of President Bola Tinubu in the sector, the Ministry will establish the Nigerian Solid Minerals Corporation which will come up in a few weeks.
The Corporation which he said would not go the way of the hitherto Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) will seek and secure partnership investment agreements with big multinational companies worldwide to leverage on the attractive investment-friendly regime operating in the country to secure massive Foreign Direct Investment for the mining sector.
The Minister identified other focus of the agenda as joint ventures with mining multinationals, big data on specific seven priority minerals and their deposits, a 30-day grace for illegal miners to join artisanal cooperatives, Mines Surveillance Task Force and Mine Police and Mineral Processing Centres to focus on Value-Added products.
He disclosed that the administration and the Ministry is targeting 50 percent contribution of solid minerals to nation’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) as against the 2 percent recorded last year.
“A lot of these projections are contingent on certain conditions – generation of very precise and efficient geoscientific data. It is totally, absolutely data driven sector. There are layers and layers of data. We have data showing what is where in the country.
“However, we can not attract multinational investments, big time serious investors without data. It is that data that will be authenticated by internationally recognised geoscientific bodies that will now be put on the global market and that’s what is going to attract investors.
“So part of the fundamentals of this resort to the reform programme that I have unfolded now is hinged on generation of data out of the transformation agenda. So, we have to generate that data and I going to propose to the Executive Council very shortly – the memo covering all factors and variables.
“There is renewed, attention focus and hope. What that entails logically is that when we put in all the factors necessary, the contribution of this sector to the GDP is envisaged to be more than these other African countries that I have mentioned, Senegal, Mauritania Namibia. Our target will be 50% or more contribution to the GDP. We are targeting upward of 50% contribution to the GDP from the solid minerals sector,” Alake said.
The Minister further stated that the Ministry would set up Mine Surveillance Police as the Mining was being reviewed to ensure efficiency in the sector.
He said “From October, a rejuvenated security regime will become active in the solid minerals sector. This will include the Mine Police, sourced from the Nigeria Police and specially trained to detect illegal mining and apprehend offenders.
“The new Mines Surveillance Security Task Force will coordinate the Mines Police and pro-actively address high risk incidences of breach of Mining Laws. The Federal and State governments will also be encouraged to allocate the prosecution of cases against illegal miners to competent courts.
“Whereas the Mining Act recognizes minerals under the ground as the exclusive property of the Federal Government, it also elaborates the need to engage communities whose hitherto peaceful and orderly environment may be disrupted by the investor about to activate a mining license.
“Already, we are reviewing the draft Nigerian Mining Act in comparison with economies that have recorded significant achievements in Foreign Direct Investment in Mining to introduce international best practices.
“We are also exploring how to secure local content in the emerging industry to ensure a fair deal for Nigerians by reviewing the reports of the Nigerian Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative on the Solid Minerals Sector.Securing the Investment.”
