President Bola Tinubu on Wednesday instructed the Federal Ministry of Solid Minerals Development to only issue mining licenses if they are tied to local value addition.
Tinubu gave the directive on Wednesday during the opening session of the African Natural Resources & Energy Investment Summit, 2024, held at the State House Conference Centre, Abuja.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Tinubu was represented at the event by the Vice-President, Kashim Shettima.
He said that the directive would ensure that young Nigerians are actively engaged in economic activities, acquiring skills and contributing to the overall development of the economy.
Shettima said his administration was fully committed to creating an enabling business environment to attract investment that encouraged ‘value addition’ on solid minerals before they are exported.
“We recognise the losses incurred from exporting crude mineral commodities and understand that it is time to change this narrative.
“By doing so, we aim to ensure that our teeming youth are actively engaged in economic activities, acquiring skills, and contributing to the nation’s foreign exchange earnings.
“Therefore, the Ministry will only issue mining licenses if they are tied to local value addition,” the President noted.
President Tinubu noted that his administration’s target in the solid minerals sector was to make Nigeria a leader in critical metals.
He commended stakeholders for the establishment of the African Minerals Strategy Group with Nigeria as the first chairman of the initiative.
“We aim to set new standards in the mining industry and ensure that Africa gets an equitable slice of supplying the world with critical metals.
“In our transition to cleaner and more sustainable energy systems, we also recognise the pivotal role that natural gas plays.
“Natural gas is a transition fuel that will fundamentally restructure our nation’s economy,” he added.
Earlier, the Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dr Dele Alake, announced the government’s strategy under the Renewed Hope Agenda to position Nigeria as a major player in the global minerals market.
“We are committed to transforming Nigeria’s solid mineral sector into a cornerstone for our nation’s economic diversification,” he said. (NAN)
