FG backs South-South plan to unlock region’s mineral wealth

The Federal Government has thrown its weight behind the South-South Development Commission’s plan to exploit the region’s solid mineral deposits, as the Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dele Alake, said the mineral wealth of the oil-producing region could create jobs, attract investment and accelerate economic diversification.

Alake made the commitment when the Director-General of the South-South Development Commission, Usoro Akpabio, led a delegation of the commission on a courtesy visit to the ministry in Abuja.

The minister said the partnership was important to President Bola Tinubu’s broader plan to use the six geopolitical development commissions to unlock economic opportunities and accelerate development across the country.

According to a statement issued on Tuesday by the Special Assistant on Media to the Minister, Lara Owoeye-Wise, Alake said the South-South could no longer rely solely on its oil and gas resources when the region also possessed significant deposits of solid minerals.

He said the region was strategically positioned to contribute to the Federal Government’s diversification agenda by developing its mineral resources alongside its established petroleum industry.

The statement read in part, “The Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dele Alake, has pledged the Ministry’s full support to the South-South Development Commission to harness the region’s solid mineral resources for investment, job creation and sustainable development.”

Alake said the ministry’s ongoing reforms were aimed at transforming mining into a major driver of industrialisation by encouraging local processing, responsible mining, investment and stronger regulation.

He highlighted the growing financial contribution of the sector to the Federal Government, as well as the increasing interest of foreign investors. The minister said the reforms had attracted more than $2.6bn in foreign direct investment into Nigeria’s mining sector, while new mineral processing facilities had emerged and created employment opportunities for Nigerians.

Alake urged South-South states to take advantage of the Federal Government’s framework allowing states to participate directly in mining through properly structured state-owned special purpose vehicles and valid mining titles. He said a number of states had already taken advantage of the arrangement.

The minister stated, “Several states have already secured mining licence approvals through this framework.”

He, however, warned state governments against introducing policies that could conflict with federal mining regulations, stressing that regulatory certainty remained critical to attracting long-term investments into the sector.

Alake said inconsistent policies and multiple authorities could discourage investors who required a predictable regulatory environment before committing capital to mining projects. He said, “We have a commonality of objective; we just need to harmonise our strategies and tactics to achieve it.”

The minister consequently assured the SSDC delegation that the Ministry of Solid Minerals Development would work with the commission to develop the region’s mineral resources and attract investments into commercially viable projects.

Earlier, Akpabio said the commission was seeking a practical partnership with the ministry in the areas of sustainable mining, environmental innovation, investment mobilisation and job creation.

She said the SSDC would align its programmes with the ministry’s policies while working with state governments and security agencies to improve the mining environment.

Particular attention, she said, would be given to the training and formalisation of artisanal miners, many of whom operate outside the formal regulatory framework. The formalisation of artisanal mining is considered important to improving government revenue, reducing unsafe mining practices and curbing environmental degradation associated with unregulated operations.

The two sides also agreed on the need for regional stakeholder and investment engagements to showcase specific mineral opportunities in the South-South and connect investors with viable projects.

Responding, Alake said the ministry would involve the SSDC in such investment engagements, describing the commission as a potential catalyst for deeper investment and economic development in the region.

The development comes as the Federal Government increasingly links its mining reforms with the new geopolitical development commissions established by the Tinubu administration.

The strategy is designed to ensure that Nigeria’s mineral resources become a source of economic activity beyond the traditional oil-producing regions and to encourage states and regional development bodies to participate more actively in the mining value chain.