THE Minister of Mines and Steel Development, Dr Kayode Fayemi, on Monday, said the remarkable improvement in Nigeria’s ranking in the World Bank’s Ease of Doing Business rating, was a result of various reforms by the present administration, including reforms in the mineral and mining sector.
Dr Fayemi, who said the reforms in the mining sector has helped to reposition the sector as a major revenue earner and improved the country’s rating as a mining destination of choice, stated this at the opening session of a policy and capacity building workshop for senior officials of the ministry, professionals and stakeholders in the mining industry, organized in partnership with the Australian government.
The Australian delegation, which comprised of mining experts, was led by the Deputy High Commissioner, Cleo Wilson.
The minister stated that the mining sector was being positioned to contribute optimally to diversifying the Nigeria economy’s revenue base and creating jobs and economic opportunity for the nation as captured in the Roadmap for the growth and development of the mining industry.
Dr Fayemi, who was represented by the Permanent Secretary, Dr Mu’azu Abdulkadir, said the workshop would provide officials of the ministry, and other stakeholders’ essential knowledge as well a great opportunity to share experiences on both technical and regulatory issues.
Dr Fayemi said that the ministry’s aspiration was to build a World Class Mineral and Mining ecosystem designed to serve a targeted domestic and export market for the mineral sector, adding that the Federal Government has demonstrated commitment by collaborating with different stakeholders including the government of advanced mining jurisdiction.
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He said the workshop with the theme: “Policy and Capacity Building Workshop for a Successful and Sustainable Mining Sector 2018”, was a follow up to the first edition that took place in 2016, which focused on the significance of transparency, legislation, and regulatory framework as well as geoscience and resource information.
The minister noted that mining’s contribution to the country’s economic growth that grew by 0.55% as at 2017.
Dr Fayemmi said that Nigeria and Australia have a long-standing history of commercial, cultural and diplomatic build up link built up over the years, as both countries had in 2012 signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) covering political economic, commercial, Scientific, technical and cultural cooperation.
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