Kaduna To Boost Solid Minerals Sector With Foreign Investors – Commissioner

The Kaduna State Government is set to reposition the solid minerals sector to generate more revenue, create jobs, and check the activities of illegal miners.

The Commissioner of Environment and Natural Resources, Alhaji Abubakar Buba, disclosed this at a quarterly ministerial press briefing at the Sir Kashim Ibrahim House on Wednesday.

The Commissioner disclosed that the Government has engaged Core International Marketing and Management Ltd to produce a Mining Development Roadmap for Kaduna State.

According to Abubakar, the state government has established a lithium processing plant at Kangimi village along the Kaduna-Jos road, with a capacity to produce over 30,000 tonnes of lithium per day.

He said the state government has earned N30 million from the mining sector in the last two quarters of last year, with higher revenue projections for this year.

The Commissioner attributed the revenue generation to the governor Uba Sani administration’s efforts to boost the mining sector.

Abubakar revealed that the Kaduna State has more than 70 solid minerals, including Lithium, Gold, Tin, Coltan, Wolframite, Titanium, and Iron,” while adding that the Kaduna Mining Development Company has acquired 18 additional mineral titles.

The Commissioner noted that there has been a significant reduction in illegal mining operations due to improved surveillance and the governor’s initiatives.

He said, “There is tremendous reduction in the illegal mining operation in the State which is as a result of improved surveillance and the Governor’s renewed thinking.

“Out of the Governor’s magnanimity, he graciously agreed that we should form cooperative societies of these illegal miners, so that at the end of the day, they will still be useful to the society.

“They will serve as the foot soldiers for any investor that is coming, because they are the indigenes and they know the terrain better than each and every one of us.”

The commissioner continued that the state government has developed a State Policy on Climate Change and Position Statement, making it the first sub-national government in Nigeria to do so.

Additionally, he said 500 youths and women have been trained on briquette making as an alternative energy source to reduce firewood consumption.

‘’We have Trained and empowered 500 youths and women on briquette making in collaboration with Kaduna Agro-Climatic Resilience in Semi-Arid Landscapes (ACReSAL) project,’’ he said.

He said the state government has also distributed clean cooking stoves to 400 women and youths in collaboration with Women’s Initiative on Sustainable Environment (WISE), a Non-Governmental Organisation.

“This will help in reducing the emission of smoke that goes to the atmosphere, which equally distorts the ozone layer and exposes humanity to more risk.

“In this part of the world, our people normally use firewood as a source of energy for cooking. We thought that before we ban the use of firewood for cooking and charcoal making, we need to provide an alternative to the people,” he added.

The commissioner commended governor Sani’s efforts which has resulted in including Kaduna State “into the Hydroelectric Power Producing Areas in Nigeria.”

“Last year, Kaduna State was rated as the cleanest city in north-western Nigeria. This is one of the achievements that we hope to sustain. This year, we hope to be the cleanest state in Nigeria, that is our target,” the commissioner added.

Kaduna To Boost Solid Minerals Sector With Foreign Investors – Commissioner is first published on The Whistler Newspaper