NEPC Reaffirms Commitment to Increase Solid Minerals Exports

By Olawale Olalekan

Mrs Nonye Ayeni, the Executive Director , Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC), has said that the Council will reinstates commitment to increase solid minerals exports through formalisation of informal cross border trade activities.

Ayeni stated this at a-day workshop organised by Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC), held at Leventis Foundation/Osun State Agriculture Training School, Brewery Road, on Thursday, in Ilesa.

She said that the State and Nigeria are blessed with immense potentials of solid minerals in which Ilesa is blessed with rich mineral deposits that remain largely untapped.

“The Council recognised the contribution of the solid minerals sector to non-oil exports portfolio and the tremendous opportunities in achieving greater economic potential through intervention.

“In a time when global economic trends challenge our traditional streams, there has never been a moment to reassess and rejuvenate our approach to economic diversification through the solid minerals sector.

“Osun hosts strategic minerals concentrations vital for global supply chains, including:gold,columbine,tin and lithium, which are used for jewelry,smartphone, renewable energy and batteries respectively”. CEO stated.

She assured that they can transform challenges into catalyst for development,for it is essential to change the narrative in Ilesa by embracing strategic steps to explore and harness the mineral potential in the locally.

The CEO stated that despite the potentials, the sector is faced with numerous challenges such as:informal activities, lack of funding, inadequate mining technology,lack of quality and standard, insufficient geological data and capacity building.

The Executive Director called for formalised mining cooperatives, strengthening export capacity building, mineral processing centre, skill revolution, enhancing market access and leveraging technology and innovation.

According to her, the Council is committed to enhancing the value chain of solid minerals sectors for global markets, establishment of solid minerals clusters, aggregation of centre and hubs.

Mrs Oyinkan Duke, the Chief Trade Promotion Officer, Solid Minerals Directorate(NEPC), Abuja, presented on the topic “Formalising ASM Activities for Export Competitiveness” .

Duke said that the sector had been neglected for sometimes in global market,but the workshop would reawakening the capacity of miners,artisanal miners, small scale miners and operators in the sector to go into formal export.

She added that they have noticed that several illegality have take over the sector which was highly discouraged, therefore miners, operators, with other set of people within the sector need to go formal.

According to her, they need to register their documents with due process, so that they will be recognised and the issue of rejection of the raw product, given in agricultural sector and mining sector will be averted.

The Promotion Officer therefore called for value addition through formal and legal activities within the sector for economy and revenue booster,high level of growth, more recognition and respected of raw product and highly patronise in the global market.

Also, Mrs Madhurii Sarkar-Amoda, Community Development Stakeholder Manager, for Segilola Resources Operating Limited, in her presentation titled:”Key Opportunities and Mobilisation of Artisanal Operators into Mainstream”.

Sarkar-Amoda explained that all hands must be on deck to ensure that Artisanal and Small-Scale Mining) are actually regulated and monitored and scale up to the way Large Scale Mining (LSM) has regulatory and monitoring body at the moment.

She expressed that it will be good, if all stakeholders involved in ASM, for the entire value chain from land owner to the asset owner to the communities, Local Government, State Government and Federal Government are involved the way LSM are involved.

She charged all stakeholders to be involved in ASM license as they involved in LSM, stressed that ASM should formalise the same way LSM is formalise.

“ASM might seems it’s cumbersome, but it covers entire value chain which everybody benefits from, adding that it covers the social aspect, environmental aspect,political aspect and economic aspect also.

“If they can get ASM formalise like LSM,we will have a lot to offer”. She ascertained.

Sarkar-Amoda lamented on the present mining aspect across the country at ASM level, admonished that if they can formalise it to a larger level the way LSM is formalised, it will be an advantage to the entire country at large.

“It will add to the GDP, they said Nigeria is a third World Country and that Nigeria is poor, Nigeria is not poor, is because of unmonitored policies and system that’s not effectively working well.

“Nigeria is self rich, only the majority are not rich,We have a lot of resources in Nigeria, only to formalise, once we’ve start formalising, things will change.

“All the royalty, levels, taxes that’s been going to nobody, but to just one pocket, the community and social benefit that are going to nobody, once there formalisation, would be directed to the right channels”. She assured.

Mr Benson Oseni, the State Coordinator, NEPC, Osun State Coordinating Office, urged miners, operators, artisanal miners among others to ensure standard and to formalises their mining sector by doing things on the right way.

Oseni urged them to embarking on the right process of register their certificates and their companies,saying this workshop will energise the participants to correct themselves from illegality to legalised mining.

He charged them at the end of the training not to compromise their standard again, but to maintain themselves in a right lane,that due process is follow in mining sector.

The State Coordinator encouraged processors on the need for value addition along the value chain through cluster mechanism.

Oseni assured them that adherence to rules and regulations guiding will make their products competitive in the international markets and will address a lot of issues at the local level in terms of security, community and stakeholders relationships , for line fall in good parts.

Those that attended the programme were:Nigerian mining association, stakeholders, operators, miners, students, and dignitaries among others.