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Illegal mining activities in Nigeria are devastating the country’s economy, as well as fuelling violence. Strategic minerals mined in the country’s north-west region include granite, gypsum, kaolin, laterite, limestone, phosphate, potash, silica sand and gold.
The Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative has estimated that the legal mining sector contributed N814.59 billion (US$527 million) in 15 years. Earnings were highest in 2021.
Nigeria’s Minister of Solid Minerals, Dele Alake, asserted in late 2024 that powerful individuals engaged in illegal mining were sponsoring banditry in the country. Recently, Edo North senator Adams Oshiomhole also alleged that retired military officers coordinated illegal mining activities nationwide. In a recent paper I examined the links between banditry, gold mining, violence and elite collusion in two states in the north-west of Nigeria.
For the rest of this column: https://www.thenigerianvoice.com/news/349038/nigerias-illegal-gold-trade-elites-and-bandits-are-workin.html