Mining sector: Focusing on extraction alone is not enough, German Chancellor, Olaf Scholz, tells Tinubu

Germany Chancellor, Olaf Scholz, said on Sunday that the traditional method of focusing on extraction in the Nigerian mineral resources sector is not enough.

Scholz made the remarks while speaking to reporters at the State House in Abuja before a closed-door meeting with President Bola Tinubu.

WesternPost reported that Scholz arrived at the Presidential Villa in Abuja at about 3:39 p.m., following which both leaders exchanged pleasantries and walked into a private discussion.

The German Chancellor said that he has been concerned about the growth of the mining industry in Nigeria for some time, as it has primarily concentrated on extraction.

He emphasised the need for more work to be done to ensure that the mining industry in Nigeria contributes more to economic development.

Speaking further, Scholz stated that this is a crucial area in which the governments of Germany and Nigeria would work together to grow the Nigerian economy around its mineral resources.

He said, “One of the main aspects of cooperation will be developing the economy and using the economic opportunities of your country. As you already said, there are a lot of chances not just from gas and oil, which is traditionally linked to your country, but there’s a lot of room for improvement and for better using the capacities of your country,

“But also for going into investments for the future, which is about hydrogen and all the things that are important for an economy that is able to produce all the necessary goods for the people without harming the environment.

“But this is something where cooperation is also important and we will do so and it will be an important aspect of our work together. It is also important that we use the way of developing your economy in the fields of the minerals you have.

“I think that the investments into this structure must be easy, but also benefiting for your country. It is something that bothered me a lot in the past that sometimes it was just about extraction, which is not enough, there should be one bit more for making it feasible that some parts of the economic development can be used in the countries of origin.

“This is not the case today in our world, but if we change this a little bit, it will change a lot and working on this field is also important for us. We see that a lot of investments have to be taken looking at infrastructure and it’s not just about roads and railways.

WesternPost reported last week how the Minister of Solid Minerals Development Dele Alake urged that there was a dire need for the Nigerian economy to diversify and be more economically productive in other natural resources.

On his part, Tinubu stated that Nigeria, which is the economic giant of Africa is still crawling, but determined to change the narrative and bring about a transformative government in the country.
He stressed that his economic team is ready to partner with Germany as the largest economy in Europe.

“Our economic team and members of the group are all here ready to partner with you, with Germany as the largest economy in Europe.

“And the largest economy in Africa is Nigeria, you know that. We are blessed with a good environment, time of weather and blessed in terms of mineral resources. Our hydrocarbon industry is still fledging environmentally while we are moving towards the transition energy source.

“I know Germany has advanced a lot in protecting the environment and modernising energy to meet the 21st century needs of both the world and Europe in particular.

“Nigeria is still crawling, but we are determined to change the narrative and bring about a transformative government in the country.

“You are very welcome with your delegation to partner with in terms of education, power, mineral resources and all the other opportunities. We have gun a long way to go to bring about the security of our people.”