Following the Federal Government’s commissioning of the lithium processing plant in Nasarawa State, the Corporate Accountability and Public Participation Africa (CAPPA) has urged the government to pursue its industrial-scale lithium mining with a deep sense of environmental accountability and protection of livelihoods in the host communities.
During a recent meeting with Chinese investors who built the plant, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu was quoted as commending their efforts and investments and urged them to take advantage of the country’s huge market and cheap labour.
The Nasarawa lithium plant, built by the Chinese firm Avatar Energy Materials Company Limited, has a production capacity of 4,000 metric tons daily, while another Chinese firm, Canmax Technologies, has pledged to invest over $200 million in constructing another lithium processing plant in Nasarawa State.
While acknowledging the potential of lithium to drive Nigeria’s economic growth and position the country as a global hub for green transition and production of cleaner technologies such as electric cars and inverters, among others, CAPPA cited concerns regarding the lack of state oversight in mining activities in parts of the country and its adverse impacts on the environment and local communities.
In a statement issued by Media & Communications Officer of CAPPA, Robert Egbe, the group said: “Lithium extraction activities often result in environmental troubles, mainly as mining companies have been known to appropriate local waters for its processing and even engage in the indiscriminate disposal of waste in open waters and lands used by locals.
“In most instances, communities have been violently displaced to facilitate mining operations, mostly driven by foreign interests, not to mention the depressing ecological damage associated with these sorts of activities, especially in our country, where environmental regulations are poorly enforced, and demand for corporate accountability is lacking as with the experience of reckless oil extractivism in the Niger Delta region.
“The Nigerian government and state authorities already cut a picture of negligence and complicity when you interrogate the many unofficial mining activities happening across the country. The Nasarawa plant may debut as the country’s first lithium plant, but alleged indiscriminate mining of the resource by the Chinese across the country, has been ongoing for several years, fueling rural banditry, environmental disasters, insecurity, deprivation and violence clashes in some communities.”
The statement further stated: “We are concerned about the implications of the lithium investments for communities, given the systemic flaws in Nigeria’s mining governance. Nigeria’s mining sector has historically favoured the Federal Government’s interests over the local communities, creating a fundamental contradiction in resource ownership.
“While the Nasarawa State government has secured three mining licenses to extract tin, gold and lithium, the decision-making authority over mineral resources placed as the exclusive preserve of the federal government, whose responsibility is often only felt when it comes to administering mining leases, has spelt much trouble for vulnerable communities across the country.”
Speaking, Executive Director of CAPPA, Akinbode Oluwafemi, said: “The communities which, though, are the true custodians of the minerals, are alienated from conversations that affect their cultural identities, livelihoods and social space. Already, there have been reported incidents and ongoing issues of land ownership tussle in Nasarawa State, with foreign Chinese corporations laying claims to lands rich in Lithium.
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“Interestingly, the commissioning of the lithium plant is happening at a time when discussions on the nature of Nigeria’s primary mining law, its discouraging provisions for joint oversight between the federal and state governments and its exclusion of community voices have prompted an ongoing proposal for amendment through the Nigerian Minerals and Mining Act (Amendment) Bill.
This raises questions about the agreement between Avatar Energy and the government and what solid benefits and protection it provides for local communities, especially with the limited disclosure of the project’s environmental impact assessment details.
“Unfortunately, the president’s meeting with the Chinese investors revealed little about the royalties and benefits accruable to local communities. In fact, Mr. President’s assurances to the lithium investors of cheap labour in Nigeria present another dimension of worry.
“We are afraid this will further consolidate the ongoing trend of exploitation by foreign mining companies, who employ locals for pittances that do nothing to improve local capacities and economies.”
While warning against the government’s greenlighting of Chinese and foreign investments without robust local control and responsibility to the environment and communities, it cautioned that such approvals could not only risk replicating familiar patterns of ecocide in the country, but also further cement China’s efforts to monopolise the African lithium market, while fostering dangerous working environments.
“Chinese lithium mining operators have been indicted in countries like Zimbabwe, Ethiopia, Namibia, and the Democratic Republic of Congo for their illicit mining operations which harm the environment and local people.
“To safeguard local environments and livelihoods and ensure sustainable mining future, the Federal Government must review the lopsided governance structure of the sector, which must firmly engage local communities in decision-making processes.
“The government must also enforce strict regulations that prioritize community well-being, including robust environmental protections, fair compensation for land use and opportunities for local economic development.
“Corporations must be held accountable for their actions, while transparency must be demanded and enforced in their operations. Only through these measures can Nigeria break free from replicating another era of state-approved eco-oppression and build a fair and empowering mining future,” the statement concluded.
