Oghenevwede Ohwovoriole in Abuja
The Raw Materials Research and Development Council (RMRDC), has launched a second generation platform to boost transparency as well as local and foreign direct investment (FDI) in the nation’s raw materials sector.
RMRDC Director General, Prof. Nnanyelugo Ike-Mounso stated this on Tuesday in Abuja during the launch of a second generation platform to boost transparency, local and foreign direct investment.
The platform also sets to curb illegal mining, and illicit financial flows.
Ike-Mounso said once the 30 per cent value addition bill is signed into law, the country will be able to curb both illegal mining and illicit financial flows in the raw materials sector.
“This database will disclose locations of some minerals, so people know where these minerals are. And at least, the authorities responsible for licensing or for checking illegal, illicit mining will also take advantage of this.
“The truth is you can’t even do investment without information. The worst thing you can do is to begin to do no good investment. Part of why investors don’t come into this country as much as we expect them to do is because there’s no data.
“You can’t invest blindly; this provides data to enable that kind of investment. So, this will of course improve on foreign direct investment, foreign private investment, and in fact investment influence in the country generally,” he said.
On illicit financial flows,
Speaking on fighting illic he said, “To fight illicit financial flows is in support of the president’s assent to the bill mandating that you do not export raw materials unless you add at least 30 per cent value to it.
“It becomes easy to trace where they’re coming from. It becomes easy to enforce a law that you must at least take it to a local facility where you process it.
“And the Ministry of Solid Minerals has an executive order currently mandating that you must process whatever you mine up to some point. So, they’re already ahead of us. So, this will help to a very large extent.”
Justifying the creation of the second generation platform, he said, “When I came in here, the first thing we did was to set up the raw material management information system, which was based on a national survey that we did, taking samples of all raw materials in the country, documenting them, and determining also investment conditions, security conditions, and all sorts.
“But shortly after that, we realised that it had limitations. So we now have to move to this second generation, which is the Nigerian Statistical Information for Products and Raw Materials. This platform is designed in such a way that we continue to integrate to other databases.”
The Director Corporate Affairs. RMRDC, Mrs. Chinyete Nnamsi-Anum in her welcome address said, “since the assumption of office by the current DG, the RMRDC has witnessed a renewed drive, strategic repositioning, and impactful interventions aimed at advancing Nigeria’s industrial development through optimal utilisation of local raw materials.”
She used the opportunity to appreciate the media and asked for more collaboration, going forward.
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