By Gabriel Ewepu
ABUJA – UNDER the leadership of the Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dr Dele Alake, the solid minerals revenue leaped from N16 billion to over N70 billion in two years.
This was revealed by the Special Assistant on Media to the Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Segun Tomori, saying Alake’s strategic policies and programmes have “redirected global attention to the nation’s mining sector in a manner quite unprecedented.”
According to the statement signed by Tomori, “From a paltry N16bn generated from the sector in 2023, it moved to N38 billion in 2024 and now set to cross the N70 billion mark under the stellar stewardship of the Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dr. Dele Alake.”
He also asserted that, “Since assuming office, Alake has redirected global attention to the nation’s mining sector in a manner quite unprecedented.”
Referring to some salient policies under the Minister’s success he said, “Armed with the now famous 7-point agenda, he hit the ground running with reforms that included the revocation of 1,633 licenses for default in payment of annual service fees in late 2023, while another 924 dormant licenses were revoked early 2024 to free up space for serious investors.”
On the impact of community Development Agreements, CDAs, Tomori said, “Guidelines for Community Development Agreements (CDAs) were also revised to make consent of host communities an integral part of license applications process.”
He also said “the elephant in the room – illegal mining, is being tackled with the establishment of the mining marshals in 2024. Just over one year after, over 300 illegal miners have been apprehended; about 150 undergoing prosecution; 98 illegal mining sites recovered. Nationwide satellite surveillance of mining sites is billed to come on stream in 2026 to bolster the capacity of the marshals.”
However, acknowledging a major challenge in the sector, State and federal conflicts on control of the sector, he said, “Though mining belongs to the exclusive legislative list, the minister creatively introduced the principle of cooperative federalism to encourage States to apply for mining licenses and operate as Limited Liability Companies .
“This has produced tremendous results as several states now have Joint Venture (JV) partnerships that has yielded several investments in Nasarawa, Kaduna, Abuja, Oyo amongst others.”
On monumental investments in the sector, he (Tomori) pointed out that, “Today, Lithium factories are springing up, a $400m rare earth metals plant is in the offing and it is estimated that close to $1.5bn Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) has been attracted to the sector since 2023.”
On the global stage, he said Alake’s advocacy for local value addition – a major component of his 7-point agenda, that seeks to make processing or some form of refining of minerals mandatory before exports, has caught continental attention, leading to the establishment of the Africa Minerals Strategy Group (AMSG).
“The AMSG, a body of African Ministers of Solid Minerals/Mining unanimously elected Dr. Alake as pioneer chairman – a testament to how his vision has thrilled his colleagues and positioned Nigeria as leading the continent’s mining sector renaissance.
“To enhance the ease of doing business in the sector, the Nigeria Minerals Decision Support System (NMRDSS) – a web based platform was established to attract investments and serve as a repository of information on geo-scientific and geo-economic data on Nigeria’s mineral resources featuring interactive mapping, geological data, infrastructure details amongst others.
“I can go on and on, therefore, it is no surprise that we are set to cross the N70bn mark in 2025. Though unprecedented, it is still a drop in the ocean, considering the vast potentials of the mining sector.
“We go again in 2026 to surpass this record by consolidating on reforms to ensure solid minerals ultimately becomes a major contributor to our nation’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP).”
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