By Alaba Olusola Oke
The Federal Government through the Nigerian Export Promotion Council ( NEPC) says that 85 per cent of mining activities in the country are not registered.
The NEPC,therefore, enjoined stakeholders in the solid minerals sector to formalize their activities for national development.
Mrs Oyinkan Duke, the Chief Trade Promotion Officer in the Department of Solid Minerals Directorate, NEPC , Abuja, said this on Wednesday at a stakeholders’ meeting in Akure.
The stakeholders’ meeting was tagged: The Strategic Programme on Formalisation of Solid Minerals for Export Competitiveness.
In a lecture titled: “ The Imperatives of Formalisation of Artisanal Mining for Development Duke, explained that the NEPC had noticed wrong perceptions of bottleneck in getting licence for mining activities.
She said that NEPC is working with State Committee on Export Promotion to capture minings activities in each state and encourage miners to form clusters in making their activities seamless.
Duke explained that Federal Government had discouraged export of raw minerals to enhance value chains and betterment for the country.
According to her, the meeting is being conducted in each state to sensitise stakeholders in order to leverage on potentials in the sector for national development.
Earlier, the Chief Executive Officer of NEPC, Mrs Nonye Ayeni, said that there are immense prospects in the sector for economic growth if only all activities in the sector are formalized.
Ayeni, who was represented by the State Coordinator of NEPC, Mrs Florence Okafor,urged all stakeholders to fully embrace strategies needed to reposition the sector.
“Let us build a solid minerals ecosystem that supports prosperity , transparency, sustainability and export growth.
“ Let us commit to formalization as a pathway to competitiveness , value creation and national development,” she said.
The NEPC CEO added that the progarmme was aimed to transform the solid minerals sector into a major source of national revenue and industrial growth.
She reiterated the NEPC’s unwavering commitment to support exporters, strengthening value chain and building Nigeria’s global competitiveness.
According to her, NEPC is encouraging people to discover solid minerals in their state for national gains, saying licensing has been streamlined.
Also speaking, the Special Senior Assistant ( SSA) on Mining to the State Governor,Mrs Folawe Sipasi-Aluko, said that stakeholders in the sector must have genuine license for their activities.
Sipasi-Aluko regretted that there were many illegal mining carting away a lot of money that should have been used by government, asking NEPC to collaborate with relevant organizations to address illegality in the sector.
Similarly, Mr Toyin Oni, the Permanent Secretary, the state Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Cooperative Services, said that the programme aligned with the ministry’s vision to drive economic growth and development.
Oni commended NEPC for its strong commitment to promoting the non-oil sector of the country , stating that formalisation of all activities in the sector would enhance export competitiveness and promote sustainable development.( NAN)
Edited by Kevin Okunzuwa
