The Mining Cadastral Office (MCO) fees and mining loyalties earned N16.3 billion between May 2023 and April 2024, according to the Federal Government.
This was announced on Thursday during the sectoral updates series in Abuja, which was held to commemorate the anniversary of President Bola Tinubu’s administration.
Dr. Dele Alake, the Minister of Solid Minerals and Development, made this announcement. According to him, the accomplishment demonstrates a surplus of N6,746,317,807.09, exceeding the N10,566,635,560.24 budgetary aim.
“This comprises collections from royalty and fees. This shows an achievement of the sum of N6,746,317,807.09 as surplus surpassing the target.”
He went on to say that as of December 31, 2023, the Ministry had generated and collected N14,938,164,335.43, or Fourteen Billion Nine Hundred and Thirty Eight Million One Hundred and Sixty Four Thousand Three Hundred and Thirty Five Naira Forty Three Kobo.
“This represents 72.1 per cent positive variance and 172.1 per cent performance when compared with the annual budgetary target of N8,680,197,621.00 for year 2023.”
The Minister went on to say that by utilizing cutting-edge, exclusive technology, the Ministry has teamed with GeoScan Gmbh through the Solid Minerals Development Fund (SMDF) to enhance the discovery and development of Nigeria’s essential mineral resources.
“It has also entered into an agreement with the African Finance Corporation to raise a project development facility to fund companies facing the challenge of raising capital to execute their early-stage exploration projects. No fewer than 20 candidates have been shortlisted and are undergoing training to prepare to manage their portfolio efficiently,” Dr. Alake stated.