Nigeria’s mining revenue has grown from about ₦12 billion to over ₦50 billion in 2025, with the issuance of 867 new mining licences within the year, the Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dr. Henry Dele Alake, has said.
He disclosed this on Thursday at the 15th induction and out-taking ceremony of the Council of Nigerian Mining Engineers and Geoscientists (COMEG), alongside a mandatory geo-entrepreneurship training workshop.
Alake, who was represented by the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Solid Minerals Development, Engr. Faruk Yusuf Yabo, said the achievements were products of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, which places strong emphasis on economic diversification through solid minerals, institutional strengthening, skills development and entrepreneurship.
He described COMEG as a strategic partner to the ministry, noting that its role in regulating professional standards, eliminating quackery and enforcing ethics was critical to building a competitive mining industry in Africa.
“The Ministry sees COMEG not just as a regulator, but as a key implementing partner. A competent, ethical and technology-driven professional community is essential to unlocking Nigeria’s vast mineral resources,” he said.
He outlined key reform areas where COMEG’s efforts align with federal priorities, including digital transformation of mining processes, mandatory entrepreneurship training, strengthened disciplinary frameworks, and the formalisation of artisanal and small-scale mining, which still accounts for over 80 per cent of mining activities in Nigeria.
Government, he said, is building a fully digital mining ecosystem through platforms such as the electronic mining cadastral system and decision-support tools, while also expanding nationwide geophysical surveys, with increased exploration activities expected in the new year following presidential approval of additional funding.
He also announced plans for an artisanal and small-scale mining development fund to support cooperatives and integrate informal miners into the formal economy, adding that efforts were ongoing to benchmark Nigerian mining and geoscience qualifications internationally.
He charged the new inductees to see themselves as change agents, embrace technology, uphold safety and environmental standards, add value to minerals and mentor the next generation, stressing that the ministry would continue to provide policy, funding and legislative support to COMEG
