INTRODUCTION
In our maiden edition, we discussed the major challenges that plague the Mining Sector, juxtaposing them with some initiatives by the Federal Government targeted at addressing a few of these challenges and evaluating how effective they have been through the years. In this Mid-year edition, we seek to revisit the Mining Roadmap of 2016, analyse where the Sector currently is on that roadmap, identify what we have done so far and what we ought to be doing, and finally evaluate whether the recent activities in the Sector are in alignment with Nigeria's mining future.
THE MINING ROADMAP
The Mining Roadmap was developed in 2016 basically to identify initiatives and develop strategies that address key challenges for industrial and energy minerals as well as the Steel Sector, and to develop an implementation plan to be executed in phases while aligning the capacity of the Mining Implementation and Strategy Team ("MIST" or "the Team") with the financial resources available. These initiatives, together with the outcomes and timeline for implementation are summarised below:
| Immediate
0 – 6 months |
Short-term
6 months – 2 years |
Medium Term
2 – 5 years |
Long Term
5 – 10 years |
Ongoing
To refresh regularly |
| Launch Roadmap and begin a campaign to generate industry buy-in | Develop a strategy to utilize priority minerals and substitute exports | Work with national and state legislators and government to address gaps and conflicts in governing legislation | Drive the development and expansion of supporting infrastructure for mining (e.g power generation, transportation) | Invest in tools and trainings required for effective service delivery by the MMSD and its agencies |
| Set up Mining Implementation and Strategy Team (MIST) to drive execution of the Roadmap | Restructure and reorganise the MMSD for more efficient operations | Deepen engagements of communities in mining | Invest in education for citizens of mining communities | Enforce established laws and regulations governing
the mining sector
5-10 years |
| Design/Establish process for strategic planning for long-term development | Create new "super" regulatory agency | Develop and harmonise (financial) incentives for attracting mining majors and juniors to Nigeria. | Drive the growth of export and value-added mining products | Work with other MDAs involved in the Sector to coordinate policies, regulations, and their implementation |
| Begin active communication and promotion of Roadmap with stakeholders | Incentivise financial participation of communities in mining | Encourage forward integration of mining and exploration companies into downstream operations | Encourage the formation of private minerals and exchanges to increase trading liquidity | Work with state government to build and maintain an enabling environment for the mining sector |
| Finalise review of key industrial assets and prepare them for strategic turnarounds. | Actively drive the formalization of ASMs | Build local technical/managerial skills and capabilities required in the industry. | Entrench gender equity and eliminate the exploitation of child labour | Provide training and extension services for ASMs to improve their productivity |
| Identify gaps in existing training programs and suggest changes | Expand coverage resolution of, and access to geoscience data in Nigeria | Promote gender equity and female participation in the sector | Deepen financial services expertise and access to funds to drive sector growth | Reinforce geoscience and research capabilities to drive investments |
| Strengthen the financial and business climate | Catalyse investment in infrastructure |
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