Mineral Resources : No Reason To Depend On Oil – Shittu

By Georgina Humphrey

Former Minister of Communications, Adebayo Shittu, says with the abundant mineral resources, Nigeria has no reason to be dependent on dwindling oil revenue.

Shittu stated this when he visited the Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dr Oladele Alake in company of the former Director General of the Voice of Nigeria, Mr.Osita Okechukwu in Abuja.

He gave kudos to the present administration for taking the bull by the horn in turning the tides with ongoing reforms of the mining sector, in line with president Tinubu’s 7-point agenda.

The duo commended the Minister for re-igniting national interest in the solid minerals sector stressing that the sector holds the key to sustainable diversification of the economy.

Reponding, the Minister restated the commitment of the Tinubu administration to make solid minerals, the nation’s highest revenue earner, stressing that bottlenecks and challenges hampering seamless mining operations are being addressed.

“We are concentrating on exploring and exploiting at least eight minerals with comparable advantage in commercially viable quantities. So we are addressing all bottlenecks, from challenges of insecurity to the menace of unlicensed miners to getting the buy-in of host communities, protecting their rights, and factoring their dues into mining operations.

“We have the full support of President Bola Tinubu, we are reviewing policies to be executed soon, “he added.

The Minister re-echoed the President’s assertion that “Nigeria is open for business,” declaring that the mining sector is poised to be the most attractive for foreign and local investments.

Edited By Grace Namiji