The Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dr. Dele Alake, Thursday afternoon hosted Governors of Kwara, Abdulrahman Abdulrasak, Oyo State, Seyi Makinde, and Niger State, Hon. Umar Bago in his office.

Speaking to the press after the meeting, Niger State Governor, Hon. Bago revealed that issues around revalidating licenses given to mining companies who have gone out of their scope dominated discussions alongside the need for them to re-register in the states with specificity as regards the location of mining in addition to security challenges faced by mining operators.

Alake in his remarks stated that with his deliberation with the Governors, grey areas have been ironed out, restating the commitment of the Federal Government to sanitising mining operations in the country and ensuring adequate security through rejigging of the nation's security architecture with the active cooperation and collaboration with the states.

"We are moving forward to sanitise mining operations in Nigeria to ensure adequate security of lives, properties, and operating environment. The devastation caused by security breaches have been discussed exhaustively and we are resolving all of these to ensure the objective of rapid development of the mining sector is achieved in the shortest time possible", the Minister concluded.

•PHOTO: L-R; Kwara State Governor, AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq, Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dr. Dele Alake, Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde and Niger state Governor, Umar Bago, during a visit to the minister’s office in Abuja, Oct. 19, 2023.