The Ministry of Solid Minerals Development has partnered with the North Central Development Commission (NCDC) to harness the mineral wealth of the North-central region and boost job creation through local processing. Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dr Dele Alake, revealed that over 300 small-scale and artisanal miners have been organised into cooperatives to transition them from illegal mining into the formal economy. More than 300 illegal mining sites have been shut down, with about 150 individuals, including foreigners, facing prosecution. Alake stated the North-central region has seen tangible gains from the ministry's value addition policy, with new mineral processing projects now operational. He noted that mining now contributes over $2 billion to Nigeria's economy under the Bola Ahmed Tinubu administration's economic diversification agenda. The policy prioritises in-country processing and beneficiation of minerals to reduce raw material exports and stimulate industrial growth. Alake described the NCDC as a lasting institution aligned with national development goals. He urged collaboration between the ministry and development commissions, stressing that their work serves the Nigerian nation and future legacy. "You're doing it for the Nigerian nation. And your own names would also be etched in the sands of time," he said. NCDC Managing Director Dr Cyril Tsenyil said the visit aimed to identify collaboration areas, proposing a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) to advance the sector. Both institutions agreed to form a technical working committee to implement the partnership.
Dr Dele Alake's push to formalise 300 artisanal miners and prosecute others reveals a dual strategy: economic reengineering and legal enforcement in the mining sector. This is not merely about regulation but about redirecting mineral wealth into state-sanctioned channels that feed national revenue and industrialisation plans under the Tinubu administration. The $2 billion contribution from mining underscores the sector's growing weight in a diversification agenda that seeks to reduce oil dependence.
The creation of cooperatives and the proposed Special Purpose Vehicle with NCDC signal an institutional effort to embed control and coordination in a historically fragmented sector. Alake's emphasis on legacy and national service, while framed morally, reflects the political imperative to show tangible outcomes from development commissions often criticised as redundant. The focus on North-central, a region with both strategic mineral deposits and political significance, suggests a calculated alignment of economic policy with regional stability.
Ordinary miners face a precarious shift—formalisation offers access to support and markets but also exposes them to regulation and displacement if they fail to comply. Communities reliant on artisanal mining may experience short-term disruption, while long-term benefits depend on how equitably processing jobs and infrastructure are distributed.
This move fits a broader pattern of reactivating development commissions not as welfare appendages but as economic delivery vehicles, integrating them into core national strategies.
