The Nigerian authorities has indicated an intention for an upward overview of mining licence charges and different sundry charges payable by mining operators within the nation.
The minister of strong minerals improvement, Dr. Dele Alake, who introduced this throughout a consultative assembly with stakeholders within the mining business, burdened the crucial of the overview to spice up the capability of the federal government to successfully reposition the mining sector.
In a press release by Segun Tomori, the minister’s particular assistant on media, on Thursday, Alake enumerated efforts being made to reposition the mining business, and revealed that asides from on-going reforms, the federal authorities was sanitising the mining setting by means of the newly unveiled Mining Marshals, which he affirmed had been conducting operations in elements of the nation to guard reliable miners and fight unlawful mining.
He solicited the assist of stakeholders for the upcoming enhance in charges for mining licences and different sundry charges, and added that this transfer had change into inevitable if authorities was to successfully fulfil its obligations of offering an enabling setting for mining operations while additionally elevating extra income for presidency.
“For us to proceed to make sure that we safe the mining setting and hold setting up measures that may ease the operational difficulties and challenges that confront miners, we have to overview the charges of mining licenses and different sundry charges. We felt that we will’t simply do that with out letting you recognize as a result of, invariably, you’re the gamers within the business,” the minister added.
On the latest revocation of dormant mining licences, the minister famous that the federal government adopted due course of and extant legal guidelines guiding the motion, emphasising {that a} 30-day restitution window nonetheless exists for the affected operators.
The minister had lately introduced a restitution charge of N10m, N7.5m, N5m and N2.5m for mining leases, small scale mining licenses, exploration licenses and quarrying licenses, respectively, for the revoked dormant licences.
The identical rule applies to these earlier revoked for default in fee of annual service charges.
In his submission, the director-general of the Mining Cadastral Workplace, Engr. Obadiah Nkom, who additionally chaired the charges overview committee, acknowledged that the committee beneficial new charges that had been reasonably priced and can improve the competitiveness of the fiscal regime of the mining sector as compared with regional and world requirements.
President of the Miners Affiliation of Nigeria (MAN), Dele Ayanleke, who spoke on behalf of the stakeholders, recommended the minister for his efforts to place the mining sector on the worldwide frontburner, expressing assist for ongoing reforms and plans to overview charges payable by operators.
He urged the minister to think about challenges confronted by miners and make sure the charges are reasonably priced.
Different stakeholders in attendance had been representatives of Girls In Mining (WIN), Gemstone Miners Affiliation (GMA), high officers of the ministry and a bunch of others.