Nat’l Gold Purchase Prog Will Boost Naira – Alake

Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dr. Oladele Alake says the National Gold Purchase programme will increase the country’s reserve and boost the value of the naira.

Dr. Alake stated this while presenting the latest gold bar to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu sourced from artisanal and small gold miners and refined by the Solid Minerals Development Fund in Abuja.

Alake who stressed that the refined gold would be sold to the Central Bank of Nigeria to bolster foreign reserves added that It met the London Bullion Market Association Good Delivery Standard.

The Minister said the event marked the first commercial transaction under the National Gold Purchase Program (NGPP), the centralised offtake scheme supported by a decentralised aggregation and production network of artisanal and small-scale miners and cooperatives.

“The successful completion of the first commercial transaction clearly demonstrates the National Gold Purchase Program’s effectiveness. It has increased the nation’s foreign reserves assets and shown that using the Nigerian Naira to purchase a liquid asset traded in United States Dollars, such as gold, is a viable strategy” Dr. Alake emphasized.

“This transaction has also underscored the potential of the National Gold Purchase Program to enhance fiscal and monetary stability.” he added.

Dr. Alake commended President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for supporting reforms in the solid minerals sector.

On his part, receiving and displaying the symbolic gold bar, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu commended the Ministry for achieving a major milestone in the administration’s drive to diversify the economy.

“This is another concrete step towards the diversification process under the Renewed Hope Agenda” the President said.

In her presentation, the Executive Secretary of the Solid Minerals Development Fund, Hajia Fatimah Shinkafi said the London Bullion Market Good Delivery Standard is the globally recognised stringent and trusted standard that enables the global trade in gold and silver bars.

“Only gold and silver bars that meet our Good Delivery standards are acceptable in the settlement of a Loco London contract – where the bullion traded is physically held in London” she noted.

Hajia Shinkafi said, through the efforts of the National Gold Purchase Program under the Ministry of Solid
Minerals Development, Nigeria has joined a select group of countries bolstering their gold reserves by purchasing gold in local currency to foster economic confidence, enhance currency stability, and create a more attractive environment for foreign investment.

By Georgina Humphrey