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FG: Nigeria Positioned as Globally Relevant Mining Hub

FG: Nigeria Positioned as Globally Relevant Mining Hub

Folalumi Alaran in Abuja

The federal government has reiterated its commitment to transforming Nigeria into a globally recognized and competitive mining hub.

The Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Solid Minerals, Engr. Farouk Yabo, while speaking in Abuja on Thursday on the sideline of the 2025 Nigeria mining week noted that Nigeria’s mining industry is no longer a hidden frontier.

He stated that with over 44 distinct mineral types identified across the federation, the sector represents one of the most exciting investment destinations on the African continent.

He noted that Nigeria is ready for responsible and profitable mining investment adding that the next decade will scale up industry growth and ensure sustainability.

“Over the past ten years, Nigeria mining week has grown from a modest industry gathering into a flagship platform that convenes government, investors, operators and development partners.

“As we enter the next decade, our focus is clear, to scale up the industry, ensure sustainability, drive value addition and firmly position Nigeria as a globally relevant mining hub,” he added.

On his part, National President of Miners Association of Nigeria, Mr. Dele Ayanleke, stated the mining week has led conversations that have hallmarked the growth and the development of Nigeria Solid Minerals sector but stated that despite progresses recorded the sector is still bedeviled with various challenges.

“While we celebrate progress, we acknowledge that challenges remain. Infrastructure gaps, access to finance and regulatory bottlenecks continue to affect miners, especially small-scale operators.

“Skills development and technology adoption are also critical areas that require sustained attention. Yet with every challenge comes an opportunity”.

Ayanleke however stated the 10th Anniversary Edition of Nigeria Mining Week presents an enhanced platform for dialogue, partnerships and investment while also showcasing technological innovation, sustainable practices and business excellence across the value chain.

“During this edition, we will further engage in initiatives that promote investment, enhance safety, support artisanal and small-scale miners, and drive compliance with global best practices.

“This event will also spotlight deal rooms, technical workshops and strategic forums to encourage practical solutions and direct engagement between operators and investors,” he added.

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Folalumi Alaran in Abuja The federal government has reiterated its commitment to transforming Nigeria into a globally recognized and competitive mining hub. The Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Solid Minerals, Engr.
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Makinde: Southern PDP Leaders Have Taken Far-reaching Decision on State of Party

Makinde: Southern PDP Leaders Have Taken Far-reaching Decision on State of Party

•Wike’s group dismisses meeting as illegal  

•CP-PDP defends zonal stakeholders

Chuks Okocha in Abuja and Segun James in Lagos

Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde, yesterday, disclosed that the leaders of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the south, had taken far-reaching decision expected to lead to wider consultations in the days ahead, preparatory to their national convention proposed to hold in Ibadan, the state capital.

But a group of some stakeholders loyal to the Minister of the FCT, Nyesom Wike, including state chairmen of the party, former governors, National Assembly members, serving and former National Working Committee members of the party, as well as other stakeholders from the region have disowned the meeting.

This was as the Conference of Professionals in the PDP has confirmed that the leaders of the party in the South did not dismiss the stakeholders’ summit organised by the zoning committee in Lagos, contrary to misleading claims by some elements in the party.

Speaking at the meeting, Makinde, who was flanked by Governor Douye Diri of Bayelsa State; chairman of the Board of Trustees and former Senate President, Senator Adolphus Wabara; and the deputy governor of Enugu State, insisted that Wike was not the issue right now.

“Personally, when people go low, or they go into the gutters, I don’t go with them. Nothing should stop us from consulting. Democracy is about the minority having their say and the majority having their way. That is democracy.

“So, we’re democrats, the south has taken far-reaching decisions, and in the days ahead, leading to our next wider consultations will also take place, and we are sure that those that have been saying all around that PDP is dead.

“That PDP is now a carcass, at least with the calibre of the people that you’ve seen here, sitting governors, former governors, leaders and elders, the former senate president, chairman of BOT, they are all here and committed to PDP taking back its rightful position in Nigeria,” he said.

The meeting also had in attendance Chief Bode George, Prince Olagunsoye Oyinlola, Dr. Fred Agbedi, former governor Emanuel Udom of Akwa Ibom, and Senator Ben Obi, among others.

Makinde explained further: “So, in the days ahead, some of the things discussed here, you’ll see them on pause. But you can see here. Go through a little bit of the people that are here.

“Governor Adeleke is here. He came back into this country, I believe this morning, and then he went straight to Osogbo to address some governance issues. But he said, look, whatever we decide here is with us.

“Governor Diri is here, Governor Peter Mbah, who couldn’t make it physically, sent the deputy governor, who is here. You have the chairman of our board of trustees here. You also have at least 12 of the 17 members of the zoning committee from the south.

“It’s one per state. So you have 12 states here. You have in each zone, you have rep members here, you have senators from each zone in the south, the three zones.

“You have BoT members from the three zones in the south. So, yes, I won’t say maybe the organisers will score 100%. You don’t score 100% in politics.

“And quite frankly, they are members of PDP. And consultation means you keep reaching out, you keep engaging. So, from this meeting, we will also reach out and engage and even do more.

“Exactly what are we trying to do? We’re trying to get all stakeholders, all tendencies in the PDP together so that we can give a credible alternative to Nigerians in the years ahead.”

On the zoning of offices, he said a decision on it was coming.

“It’s a next decision. This consultative meeting is not something that is statutory in the constitution of PDP. 

But democracy is inclusivity, reaching out and ensuring that all stakeholders are carried along, which is what we’ve done today.

“NEC is on Monday. Today is Thursday (yesterday). You will definitely have a decision. So, NEC is a proposal of Southern PDP members. Yes. These are prominent members. And, in your meeting a few hours before now, did you talk about the South producing the next presidential candidate for the party? 

“We haven’t even gotten there. We need to have a party first before you start talking about presidential candidates, you know, if we don’t have a party, anything that you’re trying to do will fall flat.

“Our efforts right now is directed towards having a viral and united PDP that Nigerians will be proud of and believe in again. I mean, that is democracy. We will reach out to them. I can disagree with people, but there shouldn’t be anything personal here.

“It should be about what are we giving to Nigerians because they are watching, you know. We want to rebuild PDP. In Oyo state, they showed last Saturday that PDP is not dead.

“In most other places of the 12 states, PDP came second in each of those. It’s some indication to us that if we continue to work hard, if we continue to strive hard, if we continue to bring our people together, we’ll get to a point where Nigerians will really start listening to us.”

Other Stakeholders Disown Meeting

State Chairmen of the PDP, former governors, National Assembly members, serving and former National Working Committee members, and other stakeholders from the southern region have disowned the zonal meeting scheduled for Lagos yesterday.

The PDP leaders, while describing the meeting as illegal, they dismissed “any resolutions, communiques, or outcomes purportedly emanating” from the meeting, saying “decisions reached in secrecy and exclusion cannot and shall not assume the authority of consensus.

The PDP chieftains made this known in a statement signed by the party chairmen of Imo, Abia, Cross River, Akwa Ibom, and Rivers, Austin Nwachukwu, Abraham Amah, Venatuis Ikem, Aniekan Akpan, and Aaron Chukwuemeka, as well as the National Vice Chairman (South-East), Chidiebere Egwu Goodluck, and Minority Leader of the House of Representatives, O. K. Chinda, among others.

“The said meeting tagged ‘a summit’ was allegedly convened in the name of the three geo-political zones of Southern Nigeria — South East, South South, and South West.

“It is highly regrettable and indeed deeply disturbing that such a meeting was convened without the courtesy of inviting several State Chairmen from the South East and South South, as well as the duly elected National Secretary and Deputy National Legal Adviser of our great party.

“Even more troubling is the inexplicable exclusion of several national officers, eminent leaders, and critical stakeholders of the PDP.

“Shockingly, the Minority Leader in the National Assembly and other principal officers of our party from the South-South and South-East were also deliberately sidelined and denied participation in a meeting where such far-reaching and sensitive decisions on zoning, power rotation, and political equity are to be discussed.

“Equally concerning is the deliberate omission of most former governors from the South East and South South, who, by every standard of history, pedigree, and institutional memory, remain critical stakeholders in any conversation about the future direction of our party. 

“Such a brazen disregard for established structures and statutory organs of the PDP not only offends the spirit of collective decision-making but also risks undermining the very foundation upon which our party was built.”

The PDP leaders, therefore, called on the National Working Committee (NWC), the National Executive Committee (NEC), and all stakeholders of the party to “disregard any outcome of the said meeting which is not only illegal but divisive.

CP-PDP Defends Meeting, States Outcome Did Not Dismiss Zoning

The Conference of Professionals in the PDP has defended leaders of the party in the south, saying they did not dismiss the Stakeholders Summit duly organised by the party’s zoning committee contrary to misleading claims by some misguided elements in the Party.

Instead, it said leaders of the party in the south not only embraced the summit but were massively in attendance for consultation with the zoning committee on the zoning of national offices ahead of the national convention scheduled to hold in Ibadan, Oyo State capital, on the 15th and 16th November, 2025.

The CP-PDP in a statement by its Chairman, Obinna Nwachukeu, said it could verify that the zoning committee led by Governor Diri duly invited and had in attendance at the meeting, relevant stakeholders from the South including the four PDP governors, Board of Trustees (BoT) members, the three National Vice Chairmen from the South, serving senators, serving members of the House of Representatives, State Chairmen, former governors and all members of the Zoning Committee from the South for consultation in line with the mandate assigned to the Committee by the party’s NEC. ‘’Any resolution or recommendation reached at the summit would therefore be valid, authentic and recognised by the party.

‘’It is thus imprudent and highly irresponsible for some individuals to attempt to discredit the valid and lawful activity of a body duly constituted by the NEC by attempting to mislead the public and members of our great party by claiming that the PDP leaders of the South are averse to the summit and that the summit was shrouded in secrecy.

‘’Information available to the Conference reveal that these misguided individuals are being teleguided and sponsored by a prominent Minister in the All Progressives Congress (APC) administration who has not hidden his intention to scuttle the scheduled National Convention of the PDP.”

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•Wike’s group dismisses meeting as illegal   •CP-PDP defends zonal stakeholders Chuks Okocha in Abuja and Segun James in Lagos Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde, yesterday, disclosed that the leaders of the Peoples
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CBN Hits 4-year High External Reserves of $41.05bn, Targets $100bn

CBN Hits 4-year High External Reserves of $41.05bn, Targets $100bn

•What this milestone means for Nigeria’s economy 

James Emejo in Abuja 

In the one of the most cheering news from Nigeria in recent times, the country’s gross Foreign Exchange Reserves increased yesterday (August 21, 2025) to $41.05 billion, the highest level in over 44 months, demonstrating the continued improvement in macroeconomic indices in recent times.

Even as the apex bank is targeting to build the country’s external to an impressive $100 billion.

A day before, external reserves rose to $41 billion from $40.96 billion on August 18, 2025, showing less volatility over the past one month.

Compared to about $40 billion, announced by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor, Mr. Olayemi Cardoso, as at July 18, external reserves had increased by about 2.62 per cent to date.

The current movement in reserves represented the highest level recorded since December 3, 2021, and has continued to maintain the upward trajectory in recent weeks.

Essentially, FX reserve movements are particularly crucial for economic stability, currency strength, import capacity, debt management, and overall investor confidence. Changes in the reserves could signal economic stress or health.

Amid huge debt service obligations, and revenue challenges, the stability in external reserves movement, coupled with a marked deceleration in inflation rate as well as Naira’s relative stability offer renewed hope for the country about better days ahead.

The development further attests to the position of the central bank’s management team that monetary policy actions are so far headed in the right direction.

Senior officials of the bank told THISDAY last night that the long term goal of the apex bank is to raise the country’s external reserves to at least $100 billion to further strengthen the economy and remove the toga of ‘fragility’ often associated with it.

Recall that during the last Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting in July, Cardoso had attested to the sustained stability in the foreign exchange market, accentuated by improved capital flows, earnings from increased crude oil production, rising non-oil exports and significant reduction in aggregate imports.

He said:  “That clearly is a reflection of the way that the international investors view the banking system, and I was again very privileged to have a conversation with a good number of them about three or four weeks before this listing took place.

“And really and truly, a lot of interest, I must say, there is a lot of interest internationally, on putting money on the Nigerian financial system.

“The key thing is that we as regulators will continue to play our part to ensure that the system and the players and the actors continue to do what we are doing, creating resilience, creating buffer, and, of course, playing by the rules, because that is so important for those who are looking to invest that they can believe and they trust in you.”

What This Milestone Means for Nigeria

With over $41 billion in the kitty, the external reserves now offer fresh hope for the country’s fragile economy and currency market. The increase reflects improved oil receipts and tighter management of foreign exchange inflows, and could serve as a stronger buffer for the naira at a time of heightened economic pressures.

External reserves, which represent the stock of foreign currencies and assets held by the CBN, are critical for meeting the country’s import needs, servicing external debt, and stabilising the naira.

Recall that when Cardoso took office in September 2023, the CBN had very low net reserves, especially once short-term obligations like heavy forwards and swaps were deducted from gross reserves.

By the end of 2023, it was disclosed that Nigeria’s net FX reserves were just $3.99 billion, meaning that although gross reserves looked healthy,  the usable net reserves was less than $4 billion.

Under Cardoso’s policies, that figure has now risen sharply after the payments of the swaps and forwards, including debts owed foreign airlines, which  allowed them to resume operations.

Although it’s still unclear what the net reserves are presently, it is a lot higher than what Cardoso inherited, since for instance over $7 billion forwards were knocked out of the arrears. This means that the exchange rate will be a lot more stable, investors’ confidence will return, while there will be free entry and free exit into the Nigerian economy.

“This is because people know that when they bring their money to Nigeria, they can take it away whenever they want. This is further reflected in the fact that even banks have started allowing people to use Naira-funded debit cards abroad. Besides, school fees are now easier to pay for parents who have their wards outside the shores of Nigeria.

“So there are so many gains. Investors can come even quietly, because they can also go quietly. So these are some of the benefits for the foreign exchange market,” a source told THISDAY yesterday.

With reserves now at over $41 billion, Nigeria is in a stronger position to defend its currency against speculative attacks, provide liquidity to the foreign exchange market, and meet international obligations without putting undue strain on the economy.

The development comes against the backdrop of reforms introduced by the CBN to unify the exchange rate and attract more inflows into the official market. Oil, Nigeria’s major source of foreign earnings, has also benefitted from relatively firm global prices, while recent efforts to curb oil theft have supported higher output and revenues. These factors have combined to push reserves to their current level, a figure not recorded in recent years.

Besides, market watchers believe the improved reserves will help restore investor confidence in Africa’s largest economy, which has struggled with foreign exchange shortages and high inflation. 

“With $41 billion in reserves, Nigeria has a stronger capacity to intervene in the market and smooth out volatility. It also reassures foreign investors that the country can meet obligations when due,” said a Lagos-based economist, who preferred anonymity.

The reserves build-up also carries wider implications for the economy. A stronger buffer could reduce the risk of currency depreciation, slow inflationary pressures caused by a weak naira, and improve the country’s credit profile in the eyes of international lenders and rating agencies. This could, in turn, lower borrowing costs for the government and attract more capital inflows.

However, experts caution that the sustainability of the new reserve level remains uncertain as Nigeria’s heavy dependence on oil revenue leaves it vulnerable to swings in global crude prices and production challenges at home. 

In the same vein, any sharp drop in oil receipts, or renewed pressure on the foreign exchange market, could quickly erode the gains. They also stress that building reserves is only part of the solution.

The country needs to diversify its economy, boost non-oil exports, and reduce reliance on imports that drain foreign currency. Structural reforms, they argue, are necessary to ensure that the gains from higher reserves translate into long-term economic stability.

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•What this milestone means for Nigeria’s economy  James Emejo in Abuja  In the one of the most cheering news from Nigeria in recent times, the country’s gross Foreign Exchange Reserves increased
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