NEPC Urges Local Processing to Boost Mineral Exports

 

By Atlantic Reports

The Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC) has called for greater investment in local mineral processing, saying Nigeria should move beyond raw exports to create jobs and retain more economic benefits from its natural resources.

The council’s Director of Solid Minerals, Mr Samson Idowu, made the call on Wednesday at the 11th Nigeria Mining Week in Abuja, where he presented a paper titled “The Impact of Solid Minerals Exports on National Development”.

Idowu said value addition, skills development and compliance with international standards were essential to improving the competitiveness of Nigerian mineral products and increasing foreign exchange earnings.

His remarks placed local processing at the centre of the export debate, with an emphasis on the employment and business opportunities that could accompany it.

Training for International Markets

Idowu said NEPC was training exporters on quality standards, export documentation and other requirements needed to enter international markets.

According to him, the council reached more than 97,000 people across the export value chain through 728 capacity-building programmes in 2025. The figure covered multiple sectors, including solid minerals, rather than mineral exporters alone.

The programmes addressed packaging, labelling, documentation, quality requirements and mentorship.

However, the presentation did not specify how many solid minerals businesses benefited or provide figures showing how the training affected their export performance.

Idowu also advocated digital technologies to improve mining operations and business processes, saying their adoption could create opportunities for engineers and other professionals.

Opportunities for Women and Small-Scale Miners

The NEPC director called for stronger participation by women in mining, including improved access to technology, training and business opportunities.

He said formalising artisanal and small-scale mining through registration and cooperative structures could help miners obtain institutional support and participate more effectively in export markets.

“Formalising artisanal and small-scale mining operations through registration and cooperative structures will help miners access institutional support and participate more effectively in the export market,” he said.

For smaller operators, the proposals link access to export opportunities with the ability to organise, meet regulatory requirements and improve product quality.

Host Communities and Responsible Mining

Idowu stressed the importance of maintaining constructive relationships with host communities and adopting technologies that support responsible mining.

He also called for closer cooperation among government agencies, operators and other stakeholders to coordinate policies, improve regional trade and expand international market access.

“Compliance with regulations, transparent business practices and sustainable mining operations are essential to building investor confidence and improving Nigeria’s position in global mineral markets,” he said.

The proposals outlined priorities for the sector but did not identify new funding commitments, processing projects or implementation timelines. Delivering the anticipated benefits will depend on practical investment and support that enables operators to process minerals locally and meet export standards.

The conference, themed “Unlocking Investment and Growth through Partnerships”, was organised by the Miners Association of Nigeria in partnership with PricewaterhouseCoopers Nigeria and the Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative.

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