The federal government on Thursday, said that it is fashioning out implementable solid minerals data rendition templates to ensure accuracy and block leakages within the solid mineral sector in the country.
Chairman, Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC), Dr. Mohammed Shehu, said this at a sensitisation campaign in the South-East on the Implementation of new solid mineral data rendition templates for effective revenue monitoring held in Enugu.
Represented by the Federal Commissioner, Federal Capital Territory in RMAFC, Amb. Ayuba Ngbako, the chairman said the implementation of new data rendition templates remained timely, given the “current economic difficulties the country is experiencing”.
According to him, the need to diversify the nation’s revenue sources cannot be over-emphasised, primarily because of the perpetual over dependence on hydro-carbon sources of revenue which is often plagued by vagaries of international oil market.
Shehu noted that vagaries in the hydro-carbon sources of revenue also include shut-ins resulting from pipeline vandalisation and crude oil theft among others.
“That is why the present administration of President Bola Tinubu has placed the harnessing of revenue potentials from other sectors of the country’s economy – solid minerals, agriculture, tourism, manufacturing, blue economy.
“These sectors, especially solid minerals, are placed in the front-burner in order to broaden the country’s revenue base,” he said.
The chairman said that the RMAFC is saddled with mandates that cut across the three tiers of government and one of such functions (mandates) is to “monitor accruals into and disbursements of revenue from federation account.
“In the quest to achieve the above mentioned mandate within the country’s mining space, the commission has in the last decade-in 2016 (Phase 1) and 2022 (Phase 2) conducted two nationwide solid mineral revenue monitoring exercises.
“This is with the intention of pushing upwards, revenue generated from the country’s mining sector.
“I am delighted to state that these efforts have considerably improved revenue generation from the sector,” he said.
Speaking, Chief Ozo Obumnene, a federal commissioner and member, Solid Mineral Monitoring Committee of the commission, said that the sensitisation was to bridge the observed gaps in the rendition of timely and accurate revenue data on a state-by-state basis.
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Obumneme said: “The exercise is also primarily aimed at ensuring the existence of a platform for an independent data source for the commission which will be free of summation errors.
“The data can be used for comparison and as advanced information for attribution purposes.
“It is imperative that perceived discrepancies in figures submitted by state governments and Ministry of Solid Minerals Development as revenue from solid-mineral sector into the federation account be addressed through use of uniform solid minerals data rendition templates.”
The Commissioner for Solid Minerals in Ebonyi State, Mr. Chidi Onyia called for closer synergy between the commission, Federal Ministry of Solid Minerals and various state governments to effectively check illegal mining leading to revenue leakages.
Onyia noted that it was worrisome that solid minerals that suppose to be the major revenue earner for both Federal and state governments had not been given due attention and its full potentials exploited.
“I commend the RMAFC for organising the sensitisation and I call for all inclusive data templates that will work for the betterment of all and ensure that the minerals we are endowed with work for us,” he said.
President of Miners Association of Nigeria (MAN), Chief Dele Anyaleke, commended the commission for seeking out all stakeholders to ensure uniform understanding and implementation of the new solid minerals data rendition templates.
Anyaleke, who was presented Mr. Kirian Ananti, urged the commission and state ministries of solid minerals to assist MAN in its quest to ensure that all miners are duly registered and their operation sites duly located.
In an address, the Commissioner for Energy and Mineral Resources Enugu State, Chief Enyinna Ogbonna, noted that the sensitisation underscored a shared commitment to improving data integrity, transparency, and accountability in the management of Nigeria’s vast mineral wealth.
“This initiative aligns perfectly with our drive to reposition the solid minerals sector as a key contributor to our internally generated revenue and economic diversification agenda in Enugu State.
“Enugu is richly endowed with considerable deposits of coal, a mineral that once powered Nigeria’s industrial growth and still holds enormous potential in today’s energy transition era,” he said.
Ogbonna assured that Enugu State would implement the new solid mineral data rendition templates anytime approved by all stakeholders to secure the nation’s revenue and create wealth for present and future developmental projects.
High point of the sensitisation was the presentation of a draft of the new solid mineral data rendition templates and the stakeholders making their inputs as well as asking relevant questions on it.
