By Hamza Opeyemi
The Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission (ICRC) says Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs) will provide the roads, rail, ports and logistics infrastructure needed to bolster Nigeria’s critical minerals from mines to market.
The ICRC Director-General, Dr Jobson Ewalefoh, disclosed this while briefing journalists at the Nigeria-U.S. Critical Minerals and Infrastructure Investor Room Meeting.
The meeting was held on the margins of the 81st session of the UN General Assembly (UNGA 81), in New York.
He explained that the landmark solid minerals collaboration between Nigeria and the U.S. government would only deliver its full value if the supporting infrastructure was in place.
“Minerals will not fly to the processing plants. They will not fly to the ports.
“You need good roads, you need railways, you need ports, you need logistics infrastructure in place for these opportunities to achieve their value,” Ewalefoh said.
He explained that beyond the government-to-government agreement on mining, the Nigerian PPP regulator was in New York to open up investment opportunities across the entire minerals value chain.
The D-G added that relevant laws have been reformed to attract more investors and protect investments.
“There is the need for people to take advantage of this opportunity to invest in roads, rail, ports and the logistics where they will reap their investments.
“It is a value chain. We are only trying to be proactive, and I can tell you that the response has been fantastic,” he said.
Ewalefoh identified the minerals pact to be one of two major investment milestones recorded, while citing agreement signed with DP World for seven billion dollars investment in the Ogun State Deep Sea Port.
On investor protection under the direction of President Bola Tinubu, he said that Nigeria now has an enabling legal framework and standard agreement template designed to shield investors from risks.
“One thing that worries investors most is the safety of their investment.
“We have agreement template that guarantees safety, whether it is political, legal or financial risk, the template will mitigate it,” he said.
He attributed the renewed confidence by investors in the country to Tinubu’s support, aimed at ensuring private capital is unlocked to build Nigeria’s infrastructure.
He also mentioned that improved collaboration among government agencies helped to remove long-standing obstacles to investment.
“With that support and enabling law in place, investors need not worry; before now, government agencies acted in silos, but we have been able to bring everybody together under the President’s leadership,” he said.
He affirmed that the commission now receives requests daily from investors in aviation, transportation, ports and other sectors of the economy, saying “Nigeria is open for business”.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the investors room, led by Dr Jumoke Oduwole, Minister, Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment, brought together senior government, industry, finance and infrastructure leaders from both countries.
The minister disclosed that Nigeria’s solid mineral exports reached N354 billion in 2025, saying the sector attracted more than 2.6 billion dollars in foreign direct investment over 30 months.(NAN)(www.nannews.ng)
Edited by Fortune Abang and Magdalene Ukuedojor
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