By Safia Abdulrahman
The federal government has announced plans to revoke 1,000 dormant mining licenses, in addition to the 900 already revoked in 2024.
Dele Alake, minister of solid minerals development, spoke at the pilot edition of the national steel summit in Abuja on Wednesday.
Alake said the move is part of efforts to sanitise the licensing system in the sector and ensure that mining titles are used for genuine industrial development rather than speculation.
“To clean up our licensing system, I had to revoke over 900 licences which had become tools in the hands of speculators rather than instruments of development,” the minister said.
“The solid minerals sector is no longer a playground for opportunists but a driver of national industrial growth and continental leadership.”
The summit, he explained, was designed to deepen collaboration between industry players and policymakers, encourage knowledge exchange, and foster a sustainable steel industry in Nigeria.
Alake added that iron and steel production has the potential to create jobs, promote self-sustaining growth, and diversify the country’s economic base.
