Solid minerals industry stakeholders have demanded that 10% of benefits be paid to host communities as part of efforts to create an atmosphere that would guarantee miners and indigenous peoples live in harmony.
These demands were tabled for deliberations on Wednesday at the public hearing of repeal and enactment of a bill titled, “Nigeria Mineral Development Company Limited (Establishment) Bill 2023,” organised by the House of Representatives Committee on Solid Minerals, according to The Punch.
Speaking at the hearing, a representative of Renevlyn Development Initiative, Tobias Lengs bemoaned the health risks associated with mining because of the deterioration of the environment and the inadequate treatment of miners in host communities.
He said, “We suggest an upward review of the extraction net value revenue that goes to the Community Development Association. 10 per cent is recommended and this should be reviewed periodically.
“The duration of a mining lease is 25 years and shall be renewable every 24 years as captured in Section 66 of the Solid Minerals Act. The 25-year mining lease arrangement is too long and leaves room for operators to get away with impunity at a huge cost to the nation. Instead, a 10-year mining lease is proposed to compel operators to be more responsive and accountable for their actions.
“The community development agreement should be flexible to allow the host community to determine exactly what they want to use the funds for without tying it to a particular line item. Their needs may change depending on the situation, hence the agreement details should not be open-ended.”
The representatives of the Environmental Defenders Network and the Nigerian Geological Survey Agency faulted the bill on the ground, saying that it gave too much power to the minister.
“The bill gives too much power to the minister. Other ministries relevant to the subject including the Ministry of Environment should be involved,” they noted.
Ms Lumun Feese, who represented the Nigerian Economic Summit Group, said that not much had changed in terms of government revenue or Nigerians’ standard of living, even with new legislation enacted to clean up the industry.
“The mining sector’s impact on the economy remains suboptimal, hovering below one per cent of Gross Domestic Product by 2015. In 2016, the government approved an industry roadmap aimed at enhancing the sector’s role as an economic driver, targeting a three per cent GDP contribution by 2025,” he said.
He urged the Federal Government to make concerted efforts to support good governance in the mining industry, while also applauding the committee for bringing up the proposals to address the industry’s startling collapse.
He stated “This call is similar to the government’s successful approach in the oil and gas sector demonstrated through the Petroleum Industry Act, 2021 to implement the Nigerian oil and gas policy. The PIA overhauled the institutional, legal, and regulatory framework for the oil and gas industry, establishing two regulatory agencies and fully commercialising the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited.”
Meanwhile, the Chairman of the committee and member representing Karu/Keffi/Kokona Federal Constituency, Nasarawa State, Jonathan Gbefwi, said the proposed law would go a long way to sanitise the industry.
