FG makes N2b from Fayemi's ministry in 2016

Fayemi during the press conference

The federal government raked in N2 billion from the ministry of Mines and Steel Development and secured $150 million which is about N45.7 billion in support from the World Bank in 2016.

The N45.7 billion from the World Bank was for the Mineral Sector Support for Economic Diversification (MSSED or MinDiver) programme.

Dr Kayode Fayemi, who heads the ministry, made the disclosure in Abuja adding that the ministry was working with the Nigerian Sovereign Investment Authority, the Nigerian Stock Exchange and other institutions to assemble a $600 million investment fund for the sector, by the first quarter of 2017.

Speaking at the 2016 end-of-year ministerial briefing and projections for 2017, Fayemi said: "We have secured the support from the World Bank for the funding of $150 million Mineral Sector Support for Economic Diversification ((Economic Diversification MSSED or MinDiver) programme.

"A critical component of the support is to provide technical assistance for the restructuring and operationalisation of the Solid Minerals Development Mining Investment Fund which would make finance available to ASM operators through development finance, micro-finance and leasing institutions."

At the event which also featured the commissioning of 38 surveillance vehicles bought for mines officers and valued at about N322 million, Fayemi said: "The fund will also help to bring back on stream previously abandoned proven mining projects like tin ore, iron ore, coal, gold and lead-zinc among others."

Fayemi is happy that his ministry made some money for the government

The minister, a former governor of Ekiti, said the ministry made a major improvement in its contribution to the federation account to about N2 billion in 2016, up from N700 million in 2015.

He further said the ministry increased productivity in the mining space and that this had led to significant discovery of mineral deposits, notably the large find of high-grade nickel a few months ago in Dangoma, Kaduna state by an Australian mining company operating in Nigeria.

According to Olayinka Oyebode, Fayemi further revealed that government had constructed 10 prototype mineral buying centres across the country for specific strategic industrial minerals.

"The centres are to serve as standardisation centres to enable ASM cooperatives and operators receive fair premium for their labour.

"With renewed determination to strengthen collaborative efforts with state governments in natural resource governance, the PMBCs are being ceded to state governments," he said.

Among other things, Dr Fayemi recalled that he had identified some challenges , including lack of geological data, weak institutional capacity and limited supporting infrastructure during his inaugural ministerial briefing on December 21, 2015, said he the ministry has recorded some remarkable achievements in tackling those challenges.