Let us start this year’s Ministerial Press Briefing with compliments and acknowledgements rather than accomplishments. Let us give honor to whom it is due. Praise be to Almighty Allah who in his infinite wisdom and mercies created the Federal Republic of Nigeria and endowed her with abundant human and material resources, including its vast mineral wealth comparable with the most endowed nations of the world. 

2. Our Stewardship 

When we, the Minister of State and I, assumed the mantle of leadership in this Ministry, we met a sector transiting between direct ownership and control by the government, to private ownership in which the role of the government is restricted to that of the regulator. By this, the government is expected to provide in addition to regulation the enabling environment for the growth of this sector.  Crucial to this is the provision of appropriate regulatory framework to ensure global best practices in the minerals and metals sector.   

Three major institutional arrangements are critical to the operations of the sector:

·        A law reflecting the reforms in the sector and institutionalizing global best practices;

·        A comprehensive policy guiding the operations of the sector;

·        Mining Regulations. 

The three are the minimum international obligations required to guide both local and foreign investors and provide a transparent mining regime which guarantees interests of investors and rid the sector of arbitrariness and discretions of officials.  

On assumption of duty in July, 2007, the Law (the Nigerian Minerals and Mining Act 2007) had been passed but not gazetted until November 2007.   

Before then, there was no National Minerals and Metals Policy in place. The last Minerals Act, enacted in 1999, could not address the current challenges in the national and global industry and was flagrantly inconsistent with global best practices. Similarly, the last Metals Policy formulated in 1964 was outdated and as such could not meet current national and global challenges. 

This also applies to Mining Regulations; our nation’s last Mining Regulations of 1949 were based on the 1946 Minerals Law bequeathed by our Colonial Masters. No meaningful progress can be achieved in the sector without these three institutional frameworks in place. 

The first major challenge confronted by the administration was to put these three instruments in place. Hence, we linked up with the Attorney General’s Office to ensure that the Law was published in the gazette. 

The task of evolving a new National Minerals and Metals Policy was placed on the management and professionals of the Ministry.  Specifically, on April 29, 2008, the Vice-President, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan, launched the new National Minerals and Metals Policy at the commissioning of the new headquarters (Minerals and Metals Complex) of the Ministry. 

The Minerals and Mining Act 2007 was presented to the Nigerian public on the same occasion through the Senate President, Senator David Mark. 

As at today, the Mining Regulations have already been considered by the management of the Ministry and have been forwarded to the Ministry of Justice for vetting. The Mining regulations have also been subjected to scrutiny by stakeholders in the industry.   

3. SEVEN STRATEGIC MINERALS 

To give the reforms a more meaningful approach, the leadership of the Ministry has prioritized the development of Seven Strategic Minerals (7SM) – Coal, Bitumen, Limestone, Iron Ore, Barytes, Gold, and Lead/Zinc. These seven minerals are world class and have been carefully chosen for development in view of their strategic importance to Nigeria’s economy and their availability in quantities that are sufficient to sustain mining operations for years. Additionally, the development of these minerals will enhance infrastructural development across the nation, as they are found in all the six geopolitical zones of the country. Furthermore, these minerals can give a significant proportion of the sector’s expected contribution to the nation’s GDP.   

Coal is to be exploited primarily for power generation. Available geological data suggests a number of prospective areas with estimated reserves of 2,734 million metric tons. In view of its low sulphur and low ash content, the Nigerian Coal is ideal for coal-fired electric power plants. Some of the coal can also be used to produce formed coke of metallurgical quality. Two companies – Western Metals Products Co. Ltd. And Dencar Services Ltd. – have indicated interest in the development of the Nigerian coal with commitments of US$15 M and US$10 M respectively for two coal fields in  Nigeria. The Ministry of Mines and Steel Development, in conjunction with the Bureau for Public Enterprises, intends to restructure six coal blocks to be put up for bidding.

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