FG earns N14.59bn from mining licences in four years
…As Nigerian Mining Cadastre Office revokes 3,402 titles
A sum of N14.59bn was generated from the mining sector into the coffers of the nation’s pulse, NewsDirect has learnt.
Nigerian NewsDirect gathered h the amount was remitted into the Treasury Single Account (TSA).
The said sum, according to the Director-General of the Nigerian Mining Cadastre, Obadiah Nkom was generated by the Office from 2018 to 2022 from issuance of mining licences.
Nkom on Thursday while speaking to State House correspondents when he featured at the 63rd session of the ministerial briefing organised by the Presidential Communications Team at the presidential Villa, Abuja, said that the Office revoked 3,402 titles that were not used, adding that the agency ensures that only the rightful people are issued license.
On the revenue generation, he explained that in 2018, 2019 and 2020, the agency generated N1.55 billion, N2.38 billion and N2.57 billion respectively.
The statistics show an annual upward growth record.
However, between 2021 and 2022, its revenue fell from N4.3 billion to N3.79 billion respectively.
Nkom explained that the revenue drop was due to changes in its internal operating system which temporarily affected revenue inflow.
He said that the introduction of Electronic Mining Cadastre was aimed at repositioning the agency.
He expressed optimism that the Office would subsequently record huge increase in revenue generation.
Nkom, who is the Director-General in charge of Rights in the Ministry of Mines further said that 100 percent of the Office’s revenues were sent to the Treasury Single Account (TSA) of the Federal Government.
He also noted that the bulk of the revenue were raked in from application, processing and annual service fees; which according to him, constitute 50 per cent of the annual revenue generated from the Federal Ministry of Mines and Steel Development.
It was gathered that President Muhammadu Buhari has renewed the appointment of Nkom for a second and final term of four years with effect from January 12, 2023.
Nkom was firstly appointed on January 12, 2019, for an initial period of four years.
Recall a joint Senate committee working on the 2022-2024 Medium-Term Expenditure and Fiscal Strategy Paper, had frowned at the revenue performance rate of the Agency recently, lamenting that the nation is on the negative of losses of huge revenue to activities of illegal miners.
