- With 2016 coming to an end, the government of Muhammadu Buhari has witnessed some ups and downs
-
Some of these experiences are revealed by Dr Kayode Fayemi, a minister
in the government who is also talking about what to expect in 2017
The
federal government raked in N2 billion from the ministry of Mines and
Steel Development and secured $150 million which is about N45.7 billion
in support from the World Bank in 2016.
The
N45.7 billion from the World Bank was for the Mineral Sector Support for
Economic Diversification (MSSED or MinDiver) programme.
Fayemi during the press conference
Dr Kayode Fayemi, who heads the ministry,
made the disclosure in Abuja adding that the ministry was working with
the Nigerian Sovereign Investment Authority, the Nigerian Stock Exchange
and other institutions to assemble a $600 million investment fund for
the sector, by the first quarter of 2017.
Speaking at the 2016 end-of-year ministerial briefing and projections for 2017, Fayemi said: "We
have secured the support from the World Bank for the funding of $150
million Mineral Sector Support for Economic Diversification ((Economic
Diversification MSSED or MinDiver) programme.
"A
critical component of the support is to provide technical assistance
for the restructuring and operationalisation of the Solid Minerals
Development Mining Investment Fund which would make finance available to
ASM operators through development finance, micro-finance and leasing
institutions."
At the event which also featured the
commissioning of 38 surveillance vehicles bought for mines officers and
valued at about N322 million, Fayemi said: "The fund will also help
to bring back on stream previously abandoned proven mining projects like
tin ore, iron ore, coal, gold and lead-zinc among others."
Fayemi is happy that his ministry made some money for the government
The
minister, a former governor of Ekiti, said the ministry made a major
improvement in its contribution to the federation account to about N2
billion in 2016, up from N700 million in 2015.
He
further said the ministry increased productivity in the mining space
and that this had led to significant discovery of mineral deposits,
notably the large find of high-grade nickel a few months ago in Dangoma,
Kaduna state by an Australian mining company operating in Nigeria.
In
a statement to NAIJ.com by his spokesperson, Olayinka Oyebode, Fayemi
further revealed that government had constructed 10 prototype mineral
buying centres across the country for specific strategic industrial
minerals.
"The
centres are to serve as standardisation centres to enable ASM
cooperatives and operators receive fair premium for their labour.
"With
renewed determination to strengthen collaborative efforts with state
governments in natural resource governance, the PMBCs are being ceded to
state governments," he said.
Among other
things, Dr Fayemi recalled that he had identified some challenges ,
including lack of geological data, weak institutional capacity and
limited supporting infrastructure during his inaugural ministerial
briefing on December 21, 2015, said he the ministry has recorded some
remarkable achievements in tackling those challenges.
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