Nigeria Strengthening Mining Reforms To Attract Global Investment
The Federal Government has said it is strengthening policy and regulatory frameworks in the solid minerals sector to attract global investment and improve Nigeria’s competitiveness in mining.
The Permanent Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Solid Minerals Development, Faruk Yabo, stated this during a stakeholders’ workshop aimed at assessing Nigeria’s compliance with the African mineral governance framework on Wednesday in Abuja.
Yabo said the engagement serves as an integration platform for Nigeria as it seeks to strengthen its participation in continental and global mining ecosystems.
According to him, the workshop brought together stakeholders from government institutions, the private sector and academia to deliberate on the future of the sector.
He noted that strengthening regulatory systems would improve access to financing, technology transfer and investor confidence.
The permanent secretary added that improved governance and credible sectoral data would position Nigeria competitively among African mining nations.
“Through fair lending mechanisms and sound policies, we will be able to establish systems that attract financing into the sector. We are strengthening policy and regulatory frameworks while ensuring that mining operators comply with the required environmental standards.
“All these efforts will place Nigeria on the right pedestal, supported by reliable data that investors can assess. This will enable Nigeria to move forward alongside other African countries in mining development,” he said.
He commended development partners, including the African Union and the French Development Agency, for supporting Nigeria’s reform efforts.
Also speaking, the Head of the African Minerals Development Centre, Tunde Arisekola, said the assessment forms part of the technical services provided by the African Union to evaluate member states’ compliance with agreed continental mining development pillars.
He said preliminary findings showed that Nigeria was performing strongly in geological data management and transparency frameworks.
“So far, Nigeria is doing very well in geology and also performing strongly in transparency, regardless of public perceptions,” he said.
However, Arisekola identified Artisanal and Small-Scale Mining as an area requiring further improvement, given the large number of Nigerians operating in the segment.
He said the focus was to organise, train and retrain artisanal miners to enable them benefit more from mining activities, noting that existing institutional structures require scaling up.
The assessment is part of broader engagements between Nigeria and the African Union to evaluate member states’ alignment with continental mining development frameworks.
The exercise is aimed at strengthening governance, transparency and investment readiness in Nigeria’s solid minerals sector.
