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Lastest News Nigeria, Politics, Business, Sport, Interview
Concerned about the recent surge in illicit mining and other criminal activities in Nasarawa State, the state government issued Order 02, 2022 to protect host communities and manage and regulate mining activities in the state.
To that purpose, it is now unlawful to conduct a minig expedition without proper documentation, a policy designed to combat all forms of insecurity and other criminal activity in the state.
State Commissioner for Environment and Natural Resources, Yakubu Kwanta, stated this on Wednesday at a press conference in Lafia, saying the decision came after the governor of the state, Engr. Abdullahi Sule, signed Executive Order No. 02, 2022.
According to Yakubu Kwanta, the purpose of the Executive Order is to offer institutional support for technical assistance to artisanal miners, and the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources is thus mandated to implement it.
“All Mining Companies and Host Communities are therefore ordered to submit two copies (2) of all previously signed community agreements to the Ministry for vetting and certification in accordance with the state’s current law before or on the 30th of January, this year.”
The Commissioner noted that the action is intended to prevent the issuing of additional community consents and development agreements to mining firms, as well as to ensure that the community development obligations made therein do not contradict with the State’s overall development masterplan.
He also stated that all mining entities arriving in the state with Federal Government authorization to conduct mining must report to the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources to verify their legal status, citizenship, and background before settling in communities in collaboration with security agencies.
As a result, the Commissioner cautioned that all host communities are prohibited from bequeathing Rights of Occupancy of property to corporations seeking to conduct mining operations in the state.
