In a bid to generate more revenue in the mining sector in the country, the Federal Government has set up a 14-member committee. This was made known by the Minister of Mines and Steel Development, Olamilekan Adegbite in a statement released by Idowu Jokpeyibo on behalf of the ministry.
The committee is reportedly on the Optimization of Revenue from Mineral Resources Sector to increase the revenue base of the country.
According to The Nation, the committee was set up to exploit the mineral resources in the country. Adegbite said that if all the 44 mineral resources in the country were used to its full potential, it would increase the revenue base of the country.
More details: Adegbite also disclosed that apart from generating revenue, the committee was set up in line with the projections of the president to alleviate 100 million Nigerians out of poverty in the next 10 years. This is through the diversification of the economy from crude oil to solid minerals exploration and exportation.
Speaking further, Adegbite encouraged the committee to be intentional in its approach and ensure that revenue generated from artisanal miners’ activities are recorded while also working out ways to block leakages from illegal mining accruals.
What you should know: The government has been trying to revive the sector in recent times. As published by Nairametrics, Pedro Omontuemhen, a partner at PricewaterhouseCoopers disclosed that in some African countries, the contribution of mining to the GDP hovers around 15-25% but Nigeria’s contribution is less than 1%. This is why the sector has been termed critical to Nigeria, leading as much as 100 million people out of poverty as mentioned earlier.
Despite the host of the mineral resources embedded in Nigeria, the mining sector has been classified as non-performing, hopefully, with the new revival of the sector, Mining will start to play significant roles in the economy.
