The Minister of Mines and Steel Development, Olamilekan Adegbite has disclosed that the Federal Government is planning to establish solid minerals processing hubs in the six geo-political zones of the country. The minister made this known while presenting a topic "Formalising Artisanal and small scale mining: The urgent need to formulate adequate policies" during the 2020 Nigeria Mining Week, saying the hubs would be situated close to locations of artisanal miners. Adegbite also explained that will consult with several artisanal miner groups in a bid to understand their needs as well as reach an agreement on the type of processing hub they would require.
"We have some interventions around mining on a regional basis. We are looking at bringing a processing centre for the artisanal miners in a particular region.
"There will be hubs in the six geopolitical zones across the country. We will consult with them before deciding on the kind of processing centre they will need."
He further noted that with small scale mining making up to 85 to 90 percent of mining activities in the country, the artisanal miners need to be encouraged to aid in job creation and economic growth of the country.
"At the ministry, we have established a remote sensing station and we are working with the satellite companies to identify areas where artisanal mining is going on.
"When that is done, we send out foot soldiers with hand held equipment, identify them, take their metrics and engage them on the benefits they will derive if they come together as a group."
Also saying 400 artisanal miner groups have been created by the government, making funding opportunities for the groups.
"A lot of artisanal miners can’t access these funds because of the conditions. What they need now is just a guarantor to access the money and pay within a period of six months," the minister said.
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