Activities of Illegal miners across the country may soon come to an end as the Federal Government has declared a war against them, as their operations were said to create holes in the revenue of the government.
This was disclosed by the Minister of Mines and Steel Development, Olamilekan Adegbite, when he visited Governor Abdullahi Sule of Nasarawa State.
Adegbite explained that more deliberate efforts would be made by the government to curb the menace in the country. According to him, the Federal Government needs to work with the state governments and ensure that mining is done properly and becomes beneficial to everybody – the miners, local, states and Federal Government.
Speaking further, the Minister stated that it was important for all artisanal miners to form co-operative societies or Joint Venture Companies. He said this would help in building a steady connection between them and the Federal Government who is focused and committed to train and equip them with the required tools.
“Mining is on the exclusive list which means it is under the purview of the Federal Government, but at the same time we encourage the State Governments to participate,’’ Adegbite advised, Daily Trust reported.
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Commenting during the visit, Governor Sule applauded the Minister for his works in the mining sector since he assumed office. He assured him of the state’s commitment to doing things right by allowing the Federal Government to mine the mineral deposits in the state and ensure it gets its share of revenue generated.
He maintained that the problems confronting miners in the state could be addressed so long as the Federal Government is ready to partner the state governments to train and equip the artisans.
What you should know: In a related development, Nairametrics had reported when the Minister revealed that a total number of 1,759 illegal Artisanal and Small Scale Miners were identified after consistent interventions by the Federal Government. Out of this number, 1,346, artisanal mining operators were drawn into forming registered Artisanal Mining Cooperatives, (AMCs) in readiness to access SmalI-scale Mining Licenses (SML).
