Nigeria’s Mining Boom: Alake's Giant Strides Evokes Global Attraction to Nigeria's Mining Sector By Josiah Adedayo

Nigeria’s Mining Boom:

Alake's Giant Strides Evokes Global Attraction to Nigeria's Mining Sector

By Josiah Adedayo 

It is superfluous working overtime recalling the shock and trepidation that greeted the appointment of Dr. Alake, a media and communication expert and brilliant strategist, as Minister of Solid Mineral Development on August 15, 2023. Naysayers had erroneously opined that Alake would find it difficult to find his feet in the technical field of mining, where geologists and mining engineers hold sway.

Indeed, the strategic importance of the mining sector to the country can hardly be over-emphasized.

According to official data, Nigeria is said to be endowed with over 40 types of minerals including gold, silica, lead, marble, tin ore, zinc, coal, iron ore, granite, laterite, manganese and limestone.

Nigeria sits on mining reserves worth $750billion following a preliminary report on assessment of the mining potentials by a German firm, GeoScan.

But the sector remains under developed, accounting for only 0.3% of Nigeria’s GDP.

So given the mining sector’s strategic place in the nation’s development goals and its potential to be a significant revenue earner for the country, President Tinubu might have decided to put in charge of the sector a trusted ally, a patriot, and an incorruptible man who he knew would make the difference.

Shortly after his appointment as Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dr. Dele Alake, in articulating his 7-point agenda stressed that the strengthening of security around mining deposits across the country and decisively combatting widespread illegal mining would be a cardinal objective of the ministry under his leadership. This was understandable as, from all indications, most of the rich mineral deposit sites in several states were no better than unmanned geographical spaces with lawless non-state actors rampaging and criminally exploiting, extracting, and exporting these precious minerals at will to the detriment of the national economy as well as endangering the lives and property of innocent citizens unfortunate to reside and make a living near these sites. Indeed, there had evolved an intricate and mutually reinforcing relationship between criminal, unregulated mining activities in these areas and such crimes as banditry, extortion of innocent citizens, and kidnapping by ruthless cartels.

On March 22, 2024, the Minister formally unveiled a new security architecture for greater security around mining sites nationwide anchored on a new 2,200-strong Mines Marshall Corp drawn from officers and men of the National Security and Civil Defense Corp (NSDC). The objective of the mines’ security outfit is to smoke out, thwart, and apprehend illegal miners and other violators of the country’s mining laws so that they can be brought to Justice.

While it is operational in all mining sites across diverse states, the Mines Marshal Corp has its command and control centre located in the Ministry of Solid Minerals Development. It has an initial 60 operatives deployed to each of the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory but, as the minister has explained severally, will eventually incorporate operatives from the Nigerian police, the army, and other security agencies while its operations will largely be technologically driven

A key component of the 7-point agenda he articulated on resumption of office is the establishment of the Nigerian Solid Minerals Corporation to play a supervisory and galvanizing role in regulating and giving a sense of direction to solid minerals mining activities in the country. According to the Minister, the processes for enacting the requisite legislation for the take-off of the Corporation is already in progress through the House Committee on Solid Minerals Development.

Shedding light on the structure and mode of operation of the envisaged Corporation, Alake said, “We are working with consultants to ensure the smooth emergence of the Corporation which will be private sector driven. We are looking at a Corporation with a structure that has 50% equity for the private sector; 25% for members of the public; 25% for the federal government. Our vision is to erect private sector-led enduring structures for the Corporation that will foster efficiency, outlive the present administration, and consequently wean it from future government interference”.

Experts estimated that the country’s solid minerals sector has the capacity to generate an annual average revenue of no less than $700 billion. It is contended in some quarters that this is an overly conservative estimate as virtually all states in Nigeria have solid minerals deposits within their geographical terrain. In a focused approach to his assignment, Alake has identified eight priority minerals for immediate action and attention. These are gold, baryte, iron-ore, lead/zinc, coal, limestone, bitumen and lithium. His energies are thus centered on undertaking regulatory reforms to restore investor confidence and renewed global interest in these priority solid mineral resources without necessarily eschewing interest and investment in scores of other minerals with which the country is blessed.

To generate critical data on the eight priority minerals and their deposits, the ministry signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with a German firm, Geo Scan Gmbn which will deploy sophisticated technology capable of exploring mineral resources up to 10,000 meters underground. Another key initiative of the Ministry in the last one year is the revision of guidelines for Community Development Agreements with the aim of deriving maximum benefits from operations of mining companies while securing requisite derived royalties accruable to government for investment in economic development. Important to note in this regard is the ongoing strengthening of the ministry’s mines inspectorate division to enhance its capacity to assess the sanctity of mining agreements with a role being designed for traditional rulers in the signing of these agreements for the benefit of host communities.

During the timeframe under review, the ministry entered into MoUs with reputable firms in the United Kingdom and Australia among others for training of Nigerian mining professionals on modern mining technology and practices. These agreements cover training, study trips, and exchanges of mining professionals with the ultimate aim of attracting foreign direct investment to enhance the country’s global competitiveness in the sector.

On one of his investment pursuit trips, Alake told his audience at the Mines and Mining Conference in London that “The country’s geographical bounty encompasses over 44 distinct mineral types, found in exploitable quantities across more than 500 locations. Recently, recognizing the evolving global landscape and in response to emerging trends, Lithium has been included as a crucial strategic mineral of global consequence”. As a fall out of these efforts, there are ongoing negotiations with British investors interested in the Lithium value chain towards the production of Lithium-powered energy buses for Nigeria’s domestic market.

With the support of the World Bank, the Ministry has conducted aeromagnetic surveys across the country which have yielded a preliminary analysis of mineral spread and deposits while a more detailed exploration is being worked on to enable investors make more informed investment decisions. The regulatory reforms which included improving transparency and reducing bureaucratic hurdles has enhanced the revenue buoyancy of the ministry. For instance, shortly after resumption of office, the Minister announced the revocation of 1,633 mining licenses due to default in the payment of their stipulated annual service fees. The affected entities had exceeded their deadlines to offset their debts as demanded by the Mining Cadastral Office. They retrieved their licenses only after defraying their debts.

It is thus not surprising that the Ministry was able to report that it contributed N16,395,640,771.58 to the federal government coffers between May 2023 and April 2024. These earnings through the Mining Cadastral Office was N6.7 billion over the revenue target of N10.5 billion set for the agency. With the minister’s determination to institutionalize processes for adding value to solid minerals before export, there is every indication that the Ministry will report even more impressive revenue performance in the near future.

Aside from giant strides on the home front, engaging the international community on the prospects of investing in a revamped mining sector has been a top priority for the minister in the last since assumption of duty. Quite several diplomatic shuttles have started yielding fruits. A deal for free training of Nigerian mining professionals on modern mining technology and practices was signed in Australia by Dr. Alake on behalf of Nigeria, and Hon. Bill Johnston, the Australian Minister of Mines and Petroleum, on behalf of Australia. Nigerian miners will benefit from training, study trips, and exchanges of mineral professionals, while the collaboration will also attract foreign direct investment, enabling Nigeria to compete globally.

A major highlight of the enthusiasm that trailed Dr. Alake’s performance was the subsequent high-level meeting with British Deputy Prime Minister, Oliver Dowden. Dowden, who chairs British National Economic Security Council, is interested in partnering with Nigeria on energy minerals such as Lithium. Alongside founder of Carousel Bio-energy, Jafar Hilali, the British leader promised to facilitate investment by a consortium of British companies in the Lithium value chain that will culminate in the production of Lithium battery-powered energy buses for the Nigerian domestic market. In the spirit of strengthened relations, Mr. Dowden seized the occasion to convey the invitation of the British Government to President Tinubu to attend the African summit, scheduled for next year.

On the sidelines of the London conference was also a meeting with the United States Assistant Secretary for Energy and Natural Resources, Geoffrey Pratt. Both leaders agreed to set up a joint team of officials to explore financing for credit to mining firms and infrastructures. Pratt expressed satisfaction with the ongoing reforms announced by the Minister at the plenary of the conference, stressing that the US would like to be Nigeria’s partner of choice in developing the solid minerals sector.

 *Just days ago, the Minister led a high-level delegation to Murdoch University, Perth in West Australia as part of a landmark two-week program aimed at advancing mining industry knowledge and strengthening bilateral collaboration*

*The visit, which will run until June 15, is supported by the Commonwealth Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade and the Australian High Commissioner to Nigeria. It is the first of two delegations expected before 2026, focused on sharing mining expertise and fostering sustainable partnerships*

*Throughout the program, the Nigerian officials will engage in a series of lectures and field visits, delving into key topics such as extractive metallurgy in Western Australia, sustainable geochemistry, and mineral science research. They will also meet directly with industry experts to exchange insights on global mining trends, explore investment opportunities, and discuss the pressing sustainability challenges confronting both nations*

*The initiative will culminate in an Industry Panel Discussion, designed to generate actionable ideas and collaborative strategies for addressing Nigeria’s mining sector challenges*

Already, there is palpable excitement in the mining industry on account of the renewed interest of the government in the sector. Alake’s office has been a beehive of activities as local and foreign investors continue to troop in, seeking to contribute their quota to mining sector development* 

In less than three years in the saddle, Dr. Alake has led the charge with the dexterity of a skillful visionary, shifting global attention to Nigeria’s solid mineral resources. The Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris during a recent courtesy visit, aptly captured the essence of the “Alake magic”- “Since he came here, he has managed to put solid minerals on the front burner, to the extent that people are becoming extremely envious of this ministry, because of the work he has done. It is not a mistake that the president brought him here. Ke knows that he can turn things around".

Like all other ministers in the President Bola Tinubu administration, Dr. Alake joined in the rendering of their account of service in the run-up to the first anniversary of the administration on May 29. It is not surprising that ministers approached this undertaking with greater seriousness and sobriety than witnessed under successive administrations since 1999. This is because the current set of ministers signed a performance bond after their appointment which detailed their set goals and objectives against which their performance would be tracked and assessed. Furthermore, a software domiciled in the office of the Special Adviser to the President on Policy Coordination, Hadizza Bala-Usman, enables members of the public to make their contributions to assessing the performance of the ministers through an appropriate feedback mechanism.

Of course, some ministries such as Works, the Federal Capital Territory, or the Ministry of Interior have the advantage of being constantly in the news and thus at the forefront of public consciousness due to the everyday nature of their activities that touch on the ordinary citizen. Against this backdrop, Alake is widely perceived to have performed impressively given the nature of his assignment in a ministry of Solid Minerals Development that he is virtually resuscitating from a largely comatose state and imbuing with a new sense of direction and purpose. Indeed, the deployment of the accomplished journalist, media strategist, and public policy communicator to the Solid Minerals Ministry was one of the surprises of the composition of President Tinubu cabinet. Not a few had wagered that Alake would be deployed to the Information and National Orientation Ministry given his eloquence and his sterling performance in that role in the Tinubu administration as governor of Lagos State between 1999 and 2007.

Yet, those who reasoned this way grossly underestimated the sheer versatility and dynamism of the man as well as the role of the journalism profession in broadening his horizon and enabling him to take on diverse roles with calmness, confidence, and competence. In Lagos, he was Commissioner for Information and Strategy in the Tinubu administration. The strategy component of his portfolio meant that he had to be abreast of developments in virtually every other ministry so as to effectively help in designing and implementing strategies for result-oriented strategic policy communication with the public. In that regard, his preparedness and capacity to function competently in any assignment not excluding his current one is beyond dispute.

As they say, “the reward for good work is more work”. That will be the mantra of the Minister as he seeks to consolidate on his “Agenda for the Transformation of Solid minerals for International Competitiveness and Domestic Prosperity”. Key elements like creation of the Nigerian Solid Minerals Corporation; Joint Ventures with Mining Multinationals; Creation of six (6) Mineral Processing centres to focus on value-added products amongst others, will ascend the implementation stage, in the coming months. Indeed, it is a new dawn for the mining sector. 

Renewed Hope is here!