Dele Alake, the Minister of Solid Minerals Development, is pushing for some serious development in the communities that host mining activities. He’s all about making sure that mining companies stick to their promises and agreements with these communities, as laid out in the Nigerian Mining Act.
At the 2023 West African mining host communities Indaba (conference) in Abuja, Alake made it clear that the government is dead set on beefing up security in the mining areas. They’ve got a whole new security plan in the works, and they’re not messing around.
Alake didn’t hold back when he said, “Every single one of us in this room comes from a host community. We all have our roots somewhere, and that somewhere is a host community. So, when we talk about boosting and improving the situation of these communities, we’re talking about ourselves. If we’re doing it for us, then we’ve got to give these communities the best. That means making sure they get the maximum benefits from the mining operations in their areas.”
He’s not just talking the talk, he’s calling for real, tangible benefits for these host communities. Alake pointed out that recent findings have revealed that mining companies aren’t holding up their end of the bargain when it comes to community development agreements.
The Nigerian Mining Act has a clause that directly affects host communities. It requires these communities and the mining companies to sign community development agreements (CDAs). But, according to Alake, they’ve seen some serious issues with how these agreements are being carried out. Some communities are clashing with the operators, there are disagreements over certain clauses in the CDAs, and the biggest headache of all is figuring out who the real leaders of these communities are. All of this has led to disputes, which in turn, have put a stop to development and economic activities.
Alake and his team at the ministry are working on policies and creating systems to reduce these disputes to the absolute minimum. Their goal is to make sure that everyone involved gets the maximum benefits.
Alake stressed the importance of a solid governance structure to drive the solid minerals sector forward. It’s not just about meeting development goals; it’s about turning all these plans and policies into real, tangible achievements.