President Bola Tinubu has said the Ministry of Solid Minerals Development would only issue mining licenses if they are tied to local value addition.
President Tinubu said the policy would ensure that young Nigerians are actively engaged in economic activities, acquiring skills and contributing to the overall development of the economy.
Tinubu disclosed this on Wednesday during the opening session of the African Natural Resources & Energy Investment Summit, 2024, held at the State House Conference Centre, Abuja.
Represented by the Vice President, Kashim Shettima, Tinubu said his administration was committed to creating an enabling business environment to attract investment that encourages value addition on solid minerals before they are exported.
“We recognize 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,” Shettima said.
Shettima said with the establishment of the African Minerals Strategy Group and Nigeria as the first chairman of the initiative, Africa through Nigeria would get her equitable slice of supplying the world critical metals.
“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,” he said.
According to a statement from Stanley Nkwoch, Senior Special Assistant on Media to the Vice President; Shettima said the federal government’s plan to transition to cleaner energy has been yielding results.
He said Nigeria has attracted over $2 billion investment in the renewable energy sector. He added that President Tinubu’s administration plans to attract more investors to invest in manufacturing solar batteries and panels.
“Nigeria has attracted over $2 billion in investment in the renewable energy sector, making it a fast-growing sector in the economy.
“Our commitment is to continue this trajectory and attract more private sector involvement in the renewable energy space, including manufacturing locally produced solar panels and batteries,” he said.
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