The federal government has set up a joint technical committee with the Revenue Mobilization Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC) on funding intervention support to accelerate sustainable development in the solid minerals sector.
Minister of State for Mines and Steel Development Dr Uchechukwu Sampson Ogah during the inauguration at the Ministry of Mines and Steel Development, Abuja, Monday, said, the committee would look at areas of synergy that would ensure the sector gets adequate funding for its operations.
He stated that when the sector is properly funded it would not only act as alternative to oil and gas as source of revenue generation for the country, but would create jobs and wealth, increase the revenue base of the country, add to its foreign reserve, reduce poverty and provide industrialization and infrastructure to Nigerians.
He tasked the Committee to bring out a Blueprint that would look at ways of generating and actualising funding for the solid mineral sector.
According to him, the Ministry needs the full support of the Revenue Mobilization Allocation and Fiscal Commission to succeed.
The committee terms of reference are: To determine the Ministry’s areas of needs requiring funding with verified costs and locations where applicable.
To identify sources for funding interventions to accelerate the development of the solid minerals sector. To Identify and establish the revenues being generated from the solid minerals value chain as revenue from the solid minerals sector.
And also, recommend ways the Revenue Mobilization Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC) could provide funding support to the development of Solid Minerals Sector. and to continuously monitor and evaluate utilisation of the intervention funds.
In his response, chairman of the Committee Aliyu A. Abdulkadir assured the ministry of right collaboration to ensure the mining sector gets required funding to develop flourish.
