Speaking on the theme, \u201cUprooting the Roots of Resource Theft: A Zero-Tolerance Approach to Mining Corruption and Increasing Insecurity in Nigeria,\u201d the EFCC chairman said illegal mining had developed into a sophisticated criminal enterprise involving local and international financiers, mineral buyers, transporters, compromised public officials and other collaborators.<\/p>\n
\u201cA serious enforcement strategy must move from the pit to the purse,\u201d he said, explaining that the commission would prioritise financial investigations, trace illicit proceeds and prosecute individuals and organisations found to be financing or facilitating illegal mining.\n<\/p>\n
Nigeria\u2019s inability to maximise the economic benefits of its mineral resources, including gold, lithium, tin, lead and zinc, remains a concern, despite the country\u2019s significant deposits, according to Olukoyede.\n<\/p>\n
He attributed the challenge to corruption, illegal exploitation and insecurity, arguing that the country\u2019s mineral wealth could only contribute meaningfully to economic development if the resources were properly managed and protected from criminal networks.\n<\/p>\n
The EFCC chairman said illegal mining should not be viewed solely as an environmental or economic offence, given its connections with extortion, smuggling, violence and other criminal activities that undermine security in mining communities.\n<\/p>\n
Between October 2023 and July 2026, the commission recorded 52 illegal-mining cases within its specialised enforcement portfolio, resulting in investigations, prosecutions and convictions, Olukoyede disclosed.<\/p>\n
Read also:\u00a0\u200bEFCC\u2019s tracking of FAAC funds exposes state assemblies\u2019 weak oversight<\/a><\/strong>\n<\/p>\n The commission also secured the forfeiture of 102 tonnes of solid minerals during the period, highlighting the scale of its enforcement activities against the illegal exploitation of mineral resources.\n<\/p>\n However, the EFCC chairman indicated that disrupting the trade would require stronger coordination among institutions responsible for mining regulation, law enforcement, financial intelligence, customs administration and revenue collection.\n<\/p>\n He called for improved intelligence sharing and joint operations to identify the financiers and ultimate beneficiaries of illegal mining, noting that the involvement of multiple agencies was necessary to address the different stages of the criminal enterprise.\n<\/p>\n Olukoyede also urged host communities, organised labour, traditional institutions, civil society organisations and the media to support efforts to expose suspicious mining activities and promote transparency in the extractive sector.<\/p>\n The emphasis on financial accountability comes as illegal exploitation of solid minerals raises concerns beyond lost government revenue, including environmental degradation, insecurity and the vulnerability of communities dependent on mining activities.\n<\/p>\n Earlier, Issa Aremu, director-general of MINILS, said the conference was important in strengthening labour education and addressing emerging challenges affecting workers and the environment.\n<\/p>\n Read also:\u00a0EFCC uncovers clandestine oil refinery in Ogun<\/a><\/strong>\n<\/p>\n Aremu commended the EFCC under Olukoyede\u2019s leadership for its efforts to curb illegal activities and promote accountability, stressing the importance of institutional collaboration in tackling challenges in the mining sector.\n<\/p>\n Olanrewaju Suraju, Chairman of HEDA Resource Centre, said illegal mining, corruption and climate degradation were interconnected challenges that required coordinated responses from government, labour organisations and civil society.<\/p>\n He argued that organised labour must play a central role in Nigeria\u2019s transition to clean energy to ensure that workers were not excluded from the economic opportunities associated with the transition.\n<\/p>\n Suraju said the three-day conference was designed to equip labour leaders with advocacy skills, skills-development opportunities and collective bargaining tools to address challenges arising from illegal mining and environmental degradation.<\/p>\n Source: <\/p>\n The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) is shifting its crackdown on illegal mining towards the financiers, mineral buyers and public officials facilitating the illicit trade, in a move aimed… <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":8074,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8073","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-business"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/globalnigerianews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8073","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/globalnigerianews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/globalnigerianews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/globalnigerianews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/globalnigerianews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8073"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/globalnigerianews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8073\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/globalnigerianews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/8074"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/globalnigerianews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8073"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/globalnigerianews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8073"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/globalnigerianews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8073"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}Related News<\/h4>\n<\/p><\/div>\n
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