The Director-General of the Raw Materials Research and Development Council (RMRDC), Prof. Nnanyelugo Ike-Muonso, has commended President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for his commitment to revitalizing the raw materials subsector of Nigeria’s economy.
Ike-Muonso made the commendation at the African Raw Materials Summit 2025, describing the President’s initiatives as “laudable” and “unrivalled” in promoting economic prosperity.
He noted that President Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda is driving an industrial renaissance rooted in local transformation, inclusive prosperity, and strategic value addition.
The RMRDC DG lauded the proposed bill at the National Assembly, which aims to ensure a minimum of 30 percent value addition to every raw material before it crosses Nigeria’s borders.
In his words: “Here in Nigeria, under the visionary leadership of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the ‘Nigeria First Policy’ is lighting the flames of an industrial renaissance—a Renewed Hope rooted in local transformation, inclusive prosperity, and strategic value addition.”
Ike-Muonso asserted that “a situation in which raw minerals are extracted from our countries, exported, refined, and sold back to us as finished products merely consolidates the foundations of our misery and pushes us further down the depths of underdevelopment.”
The DG emphasized that the summit marks a pivotal moment for Africa to reclaim its narrative, redefine its destiny, and commit to transforming raw wealth into real wealth.
According to him, “This summit is not just a dialogue; it is Africa’s proclamation of industrial independence—a renewed consciousness of authentically becoming producers of value rather than exporters of potential.”
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Ike-Muonso highlighted RMRDC’s efforts in promoting value addition and industrialization, including the development of the Data-Driven Raw Materials Information System (DARMIS).
He stated that DARMIS provides real-time intelligence for investors, producers, and policymakers, enabling informed decision-making and strategic investment.
He, therefore, called on African countries to adopt, adapt, and advance the revolution in raw materials development across the continent, stressing the need for a data-smart, production-driven, and proudly self-reliant Africa.
He said, “At RMRDC, we are not waiting for miracles—we are building models. Our DARMIS, the first of its kind in Nigeria, is a digital transformation engine. With precision, it maps our raw material resources, traces value chains, and provides real-time intelligence for investors, producers, and policymakers.
“From talc in Niger State to phosphate in Sokoto State. From coal in Enugu State to limestone in Cross River State. From lithium in Nasarawa to granite in Ekiti State—we know what we have and, more importantly, what we must do with it. Insight before investment. Data before deployment. To all Africans, we say: this is a replicable revolution. Adopt it. Adapt it. Advance it. Let us build a raw materials data-smart, production-driven, and proudly self-reliant continent.”
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