TheCable

Dele Alake, minister of solid minerals development, and Abubakar Badaru, his defence counterpart, have collaborated on plans to secure mining areas in the country.

In a statement on Friday, Segun Tomori, media aide to Alake, said the ministers have met twice in three weeks.

Speaking after a meeting on Thursday, Badaru said their conversations are in line with the resolution of President Bola Tinubu‘s administration to wipe out illegal miners and bandits.

The defence minister said the country needs “huge revenue” from the mining sector, but the security situation is hindering the expectations from materialising.

“The country needs to make huge revenue from mining, but insecurity is bedevilling the industry,” he said.

“That is why the minister is pushing so hard for us to provide serious protection around the mining areas.

“That is why we always discuss to see how we can protect the mining environment, bring lasting peace to the country so that mining will flourish and the country will earn the much-needed foreign exchange from the sector.”

Badaru said measures are underway for clearance operations at flash points before the deployment of the specialised mining police.

He said the solid minerals ministry is providing the data of all mining sites in the country to enable coordinated security operations.

On his part, Alake said the federal government is committed to bringing the full weight of the law to bear on those who do not desist from illegal mining activities.