The Federal Government has intensified efforts to move Nigeria away from the export of raw minerals, with the commissioning of a $250 million lithium mining and processing facility in Nasarawa State.
The Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, said the facility, operated by Diamond New Energy, was a clear example of the administration’s drive to promote mineral processing, industrialisation and value addition.
Idris stated this on Monday in Abuja at the first North Central Stakeholders’ Development Summit organised by the North Central Development Commission, with the theme, “The Great Leap Forward: A 20-Year Economic, Infrastructural and Social Development Plan for the North Central Region.”
He said the investment demonstrated the government’s commitment to ensuring that Nigeria derives greater economic value from its mineral resources rather than exporting them in their raw form.
“The recently commissioned $250 million Diamond New Energy lithium mining and processing facility in Nasarawa State exemplifies the Tinubu Administration’s policy of moving Nigeria from raw mineral extraction towards processing, industrialisation and value addition,” Idris said.
The minister said the development was part of the government’s broader effort to use the country’s natural resources to create jobs, attract investment and strengthen local industries.
“For the North Central, Renewed Hope means connecting agriculture to agro-processing, minerals to manufacturing, energy to industry, skills to employment and infrastructure to markets,” he said.
Idris noted that the North Central region’s vast agricultural land, solid minerals and energy resources provided significant opportunities for industrialisation and economic growth.
He said the Federal Government was also expanding agricultural mechanisation, irrigation, financing, storage and processing to position the region as a major agricultural and agro-industrial hub.
According to him, the administration’s priority as Nigeria approaches 2027 is to translate the gains of its economic reforms into increased production, more jobs, lower costs and higher incomes.
“As we approach 2027, our priority is to translate the gains of difficult economic reforms into increased production, jobs, lower costs, higher incomes and improved living standards,” Idris said.
He said investments in infrastructure and security were also critical to unlocking the economic potential of the region.
“These are not simply roads and bridges; they are economic infrastructure connecting farms to markets, reducing transportation costs and creating opportunities for trade and investment,” the minister said.
Idris urged stakeholders in the North Central to ensure that the region’s 20-year development vision produced measurable improvements in the lives of residents.
“The ‘Great Leap Forward’ should ultimately be measured not by meetings held or documents produced, but by safer communities, productive farms, better infrastructure, new industries, expanding businesses, jobs for our young people and rising household prosperity,” he said.