By Gabriel Ewepu
ABUJA—A report has fingered some political leaders for aiding criminals to perpetrate illegal mining in the solid mineral sector of countries in Africa.
The report, titled ‘Violent Earth: Mining, Conflict, and Insecurity in Nigeria’ by Global Rights Nigeria, was presented by the Executive Director, Global Rights Nigeria, Abiodun Baiyewu, at the 5th West African Mining Host Communities, INDABA, in Abuja weekend.
At the event, members of host communities accused political actors for giving illegal miners the covering and courage to perpetrate their nefarious activities at the detriment of host communities and the country at large.
The report highlighted a lot of protracted issues negatively impacting the sector, revenue, investments, environment, health, security, and development, including weak regulations, monitoring and arrest.
It pointed out that exclusive control of mineral resources by the federal government creates avoidable conflicts by it and state governments made it difficult for the sector to flourish, explaining that it made the sector unattractive to investors because of the constitutional bottlenecks surrounding control of solid minerals in the country.
However, the report recommended that there was need for government to conduct public awareness campaigns and support alternative livelihoods; improve data collection and research; strengthen law enforcement training; enhance national security for critical minerals and promote climate-smart mining, among others.
Meanwhile, the Executive Secretary of the Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparent Initiative, NEITI, Dr. Orji Ogbannaya Orji, said despite the fact that the solid minerals sector held over 44 mineral types across 500 locations in all 36 states and Federal Capital Territory, FCT, its contribution had remained abysmal to the Gross Domestic Product, GDP, with less than one per cent.
According to Orji, in the last solid minerals audit report in 2023, the total revenue earnings stood at N401 billion, representing 0.83 per cent of the GDP, which indicated an urgent and drastic action to change the narrative.
He suggested an urgent reform in the legal framework, transparency, reliable data, safeguarding the environment and host communities’ compliance with regulations by mining communities, citizens welfare and empowerment of the rural economy.
Meanwhile, the National President, Miners Association of Nigeria, MAN, ‘Dele Ayanleke, in his remarks, said: “What will make a state government come up to say it wants to make its own laws and structures when the federal government has its own already, if they are well enforced?
‘’With large land mass of Niger State, it is only one mines inspectorate officer with rickety vehicle to operate, how can he regulate mining activities?
“Until we are very international with our policies and fund those policies, the sector will not make progress. But if all these gaps are blocked, the sector will move forward and grow to the benefit of Nigerians.”
Speaking on the sidelines of the conference, the Executive Director, the Center for Social Impact Studies, CeSIS, Ghana, Robert Tanti Ali, called for harmonised policies, guidelines, and legislation that would tackle the challenges facing the solid minerals sector of West African countries.
“One of the things we need to do is to harmonise our policies, guidelines, and legislation because it is clear that across the continent, we have a similar challenge, even in West Africa, we have a similar challenge.
‘’That is why ECOWAS has a directive on the harmonisation of all the principles and guidelines in the extractive sector.
“We need to come together and identify the common themes around the issues, and then design a guideline which we have to be more dedicated to it because all the issues raised in Nigeria about artisanal mining, we have the same problem in Ghana, in Cote d’Ivoire, Burkina Faso and it is connected, that is why we need to come together.
“In Ghana, illegal mining is a huge challenge, with our water bodies, our farm, it is affecting our cocoa production. People are dying, the public health issues. So we need to sit back and collectively decide to channel our strength towards a particular path to solve this problem,” Ali stated.
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