FG will establish 6 mineral centers to boost the sector – Dele Alake – Worldstage

*FG will implement technology to supervise mining sites

The Minister of Mineral Resources Development, Dr. Dele Alake, has announced that the federal government plans to establish six mining centers in six geopolitical zones.

According to Alake, the goal is to revitalize the sector.

Alake said this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja on Sunday.

He added that the plan is part of President Bola Tinubus’ administration’s efforts to diversify the country’s economy by developing key sectors such as the mineral resources industry.

“The next is the creation of six mineral centers in each of the six geopolitical zones.

“We have our mineral deposits all over the country and we cannot concentrate our mineral processing centers in one facility; Work on these plans in individual zones is currently underway, he said.

According to the Minister, these centres are also part of the government’s efforts to increase the value of extracted mineral resources, which is intended to facilitate a multiplier effect in the economy.

NAN recalls that the Minister announced that no license will be granted to mining companies to operate without submitting a comprehensive plan for value addition such as processing and refining.

Alake said that in the past, investors extracted mineral resources from Nigeria without adding any value to them, which he said was a great loss to the country’s economy.

“Lithium is one of the most wonderful substances in the world and contains other related minerals such as nickel, cobalt and copper.

“So when an operator takes an ounce of our lithium out of Nigeria, they may be declaring it to be lithium.

“But when it reaches the host country, it finds that it has access to other minerals, which can be beneficial to it and detrimental to Nigeria.

“Therefore, our main policy that we have adopted is that from now on we will no longer accept applications from investors who do not provide us with a concrete plan to increase local value.

“This means there is a need for processing to add local value, which in turn will generate a multiplier effect in terms of local employment, technology and skills transfer,” he said.

He said the move is in line with plans to locally produce electric vehicle (EV) batteries in Nigeria, the main ingredient of which is lithium.

“Our goal is to start producing batteries for electric vehicles that use lithium and other related minerals,” he said.

The Minister said the policy of increasing local value added has also been widely accepted by other African countries aiming to develop local economies.

TECHNOLOGY OF SUPERVISION OF MINING FACILITIES

Dr Dele Alake, Minister of Solid Minerals Development, says the Federal Government will deploy technology to monitor mining sites across the country.

He added that the technology will complement the 2,220-strong Corps of Mine Marshals, formed from the Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), tasked with combating illegal mining.

The corps deployed across 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) also received military training in modern warfare aimed at securing Nigeria’s natural resources.

“We are introducing some technology, we do not rely only on people and materials.

“The satellite surveillance gadgets we are installing there are intended to enable us to observe all mining sites in Nigeria in real time.

“So that when we notice any violation, we can send mining officers there very quickly and we don’t even have to wait for any interpersonal communication.

This shortens the time of knowledge and action. Right now we are dependent on people giving us intelligence information, but when the satellite surveillance gadget starts working, we will be able to see it for ourselves.

“This is a step forward in the right direction,” he said.

The Minister stated that in order to attract investors, especially large players, to the sector, it is necessary to introduce policies and initiatives aimed at securing their investments.

“We had to put policy measures in place to ensure that when these investors come in, they don’t just go into the darkness that we had here before.

“They will ask several questions regarding the security of the operating environment, investments, personnel and ease of doing business in Nigeria and the sector,” he said.

He said President Bola Tinubu’s administration inherited many security challenges such as banditry, kidnapping and terrorism which are linked to the solid minerals sector.

He explained that most mining activities take place in forests and that is where these types of crimes occur.

He stated that the Tinubu administration is committed to healing and repositioning the sector so that it can make a significant contribution to Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

According to the minister, concerted efforts are being made to curb the menace, working with other government agencies such as the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), the Nigerian Army and the police to achieve quick results.

“I have met with the Inspector General of Police on this matter and he is willing to allocate more personnel to us so that we can support those we have on the ground.

“Even the EFCC is working with us, they are also making arrests, the military has also released the number of illegal miners arrested, it is a holistic effort involving all security agencies.

“But mine managers are just the face of the security apparatus we are creating to combat illegal mining,” he said.