The Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dr. Kayode Fayemi, has said the country's solid minerals sector is currently being repositioned to meet the Federal Government's plan to diversify the economy and create jobs through the sector.

Fayemi said the major focus of the ministry is to ensure that the solid mineral sector improve its contribution to the gross domestic product from 0.3 per cent to at least 10 per cent in the near future. He said a lot of innovations are being put in place to overcome all the encumbrances that could hinder the attainment of the goal.

Delivering the keynote address at the 52nd Conference of the Nigerian Mining and Geosciences Society in Ilorin, the Kwara State capital, on Tuesday, Fayemi said the target growth is achievable, adding that the minerals industry has great opportunities for diversification and linkages to the development of other sectors of the Nigerian economy.

He said: "We strongly believe that the only way minerals development can be sustainable is through economic linkages. We shall promote the development of industrial minerals and encourage down stream linkages leading to the processing of these minerals for our local industries.

"It is expected that huge foreign exchange will be conserved through import substitution; jobs will be created, technological capacity will improve and there shall be increase in resource rents. We shall concentrate on developing minerals that are critical feedstock in oil and gas, agriculture, manufacturing and infrastructure."

Noting that the Mining sector has witnessed extensive reforms since 1999, which essentially crystallized around the Nigerian Minerals and Mining Act of 2007, Fayemi said the country is again on the path to providing a transparent and workable regulatory and policy environment for a private sector- led mining. Speaking further, the minister said the generation of geosciences data to unlock the potential of the sector has been a major challenge.

He said the present government has found it essential to improve generation of baseline data such as geophysical, geochemical and geological datasets necessary to unveil the tremendous geological potential of the nation. "To this end the Nigerian Geological Survey Agency and other similar Agencies will be adequately funded to accomplish this goal," he added.

Fayemi said an improved Computerized Mineral Title Administration remained a necessity in a bid to ensure transparent transaction of online application to mineral titles. He added that the present administration is geared towards ensuring best practices in this area in order to restore investor's confidence in the sector.

The Ministry of Solid Minerals Development, according to Fayemi, is set to build an integrated geospatial web portal, which will serve as a one-stop shop data window to provide unhindered access to information on the sector to stakeholders. Regretting that a major bulk of mining activities were being done illegally, the minister said the ministry would accelerate the formalization of artisanal and small scale miners to ensure sustainable development of the mineral resources.

He said: "You will all agree with me that the activities of illegal miners have been a menace to the growth of this sector especially with respect to revenue generation and smuggling of mineral commodities. This administration is determined to stop this ugly trend by collaborating with the Ministry of Interior to provide necessary security at mines fields and to checkmate illegal mining nationwide. "Already 3,000 men of the National Civil Defence Corps have been deployed as Mines police towards achieving this goal.

"The Ministry is also in talks with other organs of government such as the Customs to stem illicit smuggling activities at our borders. "Government is making determined effort to set up more mineral buying centers in order to improve value additions and ensure adequate profit for small scale miners."

In addressing the problem of funding, which has been a major challenge in the sector, the minister said the ministry has commenced constructive engagement with the Central Bank of Nigeria and with commercial lenders to help them create the teams to sharpen commercial options for Nigerian miners. Fayemi added that commercial banks are being encouraged to set up solid minerals desk to facilitate access to loans.

The Minister lauded the contributions of the NMGS to national development and urged them to put their professional and intellectual abilities to bear on the government's effort to diversify the economy through the mining sector. He said: "This professional association has played a very significant role in our nation building since inception especially in the mining and oil sectors where it played a key role in the acquisition, preservation and dissemination of mining geoscientific and metallurgical knowledge."

"The intellectual contribution of men and women of this highly esteemed association will go a long way to chart a new course and support the current effort of Mr. President to diversify the economic base of this country."

Earlier in his address, the President of NMGS, Prof. Gbenga Okunlola, lauded the current efforts of the President Mohammadu Buhari administration in focusing on the mining sector as a way to diversify the economy, assuring that NMGS would provide the required technical and professional supports. Specifically, the NMGS president, who lauded Fayemi's strategic engagement and partnership with the society in moving the sector forward, said the NMGS would provide all the needed technical support to the ministry's effort to make the Ajaokuta Steel Company work.

Okunlola said the society is excited that the current administration is pursuing the issue of diversification with much vigour, adding that the society had always advocated the need for diversification of the economy from oil. Earlier, the Governor of Kwara State, Alhaji Abduifatah Ahmed, had while receiving Fayemi at the Governor's lodge, said the state is ready to partner with the Federal Government in exploring the minerals deposit in the state in line with the proposal made by the minister.

Governor Ahmed said the state had already floated a special purpose vehicle to drive the process as suggested by the ministry, adding that he was convinced that the ministry would live up to expectation in view of its current leadership. The Governor said his administration was also concerned about the activities of illegal miners and had commenced a programme aimed at monitoring mining activities and sites in the state.