Governor Uba Sani is repositioning Kaduna State’s solid minerals sector to generate more revenue, create jobs, and curb the menace of illegal mining by bringing in foreign investors.
This was disclosed by the Commissioner of Environment and Natural Resources, Alhaji Abubakar Buba, during the quarterly ministerial press briefing held at Sir Kashim Ibrahim House.
He revealed that the State Government has engaged Core International Marketing and Management Ltd to develop a Mining Development Roadmap for Kaduna State.
According to Alhaji Abubakar, the State raked in ₦30 million from the mining sector in the last two quarters of 2024, with higher projections set for 2025.
He also announced the establishment of a lithium processing plant at Kangimi village along the Kaduna-Jos Road — “the first of its kind in Nigeria.”
The plant, he said, has the capacity to produce over 30,000 tonnes of lithium per day.
Kaduna State, he added, is richly endowed with over 70 solid minerals, including lithium, gold, tin, coltan, wolframite, titanium and iron. The Kaduna Mining Development Company has also acquired 18 additional mineral titles.
The Commissioner reported a significant decline in illegal mining due to improved surveillance and Governor Uba Sani’s proactive reforms.
“Out of the Governor’s magnanimity, he graciously agreed that we should form cooperative societies of these illegal miners, so that at the end of the day, they will still be useful to the society,” he explained.
“They will serve as the foot soldiers for any investor that is coming, because they are the indigenes and they know the terrain better than each and every one of us,” he added.
On environmental initiatives, Alhaji Abubakar noted that Kaduna State is leading subnational climate efforts with the production of both a State Policy on Climate Change and a Position Statement.
“A lot of states have done the policy document, but Kaduna State is the first to come out with the two,” he said.
In partnership with the ACReSAL Project, the government trained and empowered 500 youths and women in briquette production as a cleaner alternative to firewood.
“In this part of the world, our people normally use firewood as a source of energy for cooking. We thought that before we ban the use of firewood for cooking and charcoal making, we need to provide an alternative to the people,” he explained.
“That’s the reason why the state government, in collaboration with ACReSAL, we trained over 500 women and youths on how to make briquettes,” he added.
He noted the importance of briquettes in protecting the environment:
“Briquettes can serve as a source of energy to our women and children for cooking without necessarily burning down our trees, because the trees serve as carbon shield for humanity.”
The Commissioner also highlighted the distribution of clean cooking stoves to 400 women and youths in collaboration with the Women’s Initiative on Sustainable Environment (WISE).
“This will help in reducing the emission of smoke that goes to the atmosphere, which equally distorts the ozone layer and exposes humanity to more risk,” he said.
In recognition of Governor Sani’s environmental leadership, Kaduna State has now been included in the Hydroelectric Power Producing Areas Development Commission (HYPPADEC).
“Last year, Kaduna State was rated as the cleanest city in north-western Nigeria. This is one of the achievements that we hope to sustain. This year, we hope to be the cleanest state in Nigeria — that is our target,” the Commissioner concluded.
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