About 100 kilogrammes of gold leaves the country every day without any record, Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dr. Kayode Fayemi, has said.
Fayemi said this in a lecture delivered on Friday at the National Defence College, Abuja, according to a statement issued on Sunday by the Special Assistant to the Minister on Media, Mr. Olayinka Oyebode
The minister, who spoke on ‘Solid Minerals and National Development in Nigeria,’ lamented that the country was losing a lot to illegal mining activities being carried out by some citizens aided by some foreigners.
He said the ministry was collaborating with relevant security agencies to ensure that the ugly trend was stopped.
He said, “Many of them do not recognise these minerals. So, in most cases they do not know the value of what the person is taking out illegally.
“So, we are partnering with security agencies, the Customs, Immigration, Police and Civil Defence to assist us.
“Once we get the regulatory framework right and create conducive environment for investment to thrive, we shall witness huge investment in the sector, create wealth and employment opportunities.”
Fayemi challenged security agencies in the country to come up with technology that could be deployed to track the use of explosives for which permits were given in the country.
He said part of his tasks as minister in charge of the solid minerals was to sign explosives permits for use in quarries and mining sites, adding that it was important to track their use as part of efforts to curtail activities of insurgent groups and violent crimes in the country.