Nigeria’s Fight Against Illegal Mining Boosts Revenue From ₦6bn To ₦38bn In One Year
Nigeria’s battle against illegal mining is beginning to yield results, with revenues from the solid minerals sector rising from just ₦6 billion to over ₦38 billion within a year of the creation of the Mining Marshals.
Commander of the Mining Marshals, Attah Onoja, revealed this on Wednesday at a media parley organised by the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) FCT Council, where he credited the increase to the crackdown on cartels that have long plundered Nigeria’s mineral wealth.
“Illegal mining cannot be defeated by enforcement agencies alone, and this is why we are calling on the media to be partners in this fight,” Onoja said, warning that cartels were now sponsoring “rogue journalism” to discredit the clampdown.
The Mining Marshals an enforcement arm of the NSCDC established under the Tinubu administration—have dismantled illegal camps, prosecuted offenders, and restored order in volatile mining corridors.
But despite the progress, the scale of the problem remains daunting.
The Commissioner of Police, FCT, Ajao Adewale, described illegal mining as a “cartel-driven enterprise” bankrolled by powerful Nigerians, fuelling banditry and costing the nation an estimated $9 billion (₦13.7 trillion) annually.
He listed Zamfara, Nasarawa, Kogi, Kaduna, Niger, Kwara, Osun and parts of Abuja as hotspots, with over 70 suspects arrested in the FCT alone between 2023 and 2024.
Experts warn the costs go beyond lost revenue: from mercury poisoning in Zamfara’s gold fields to child labour in Nasarawa’s lithium sites, communities are paying the highest price.
The NUJ FCT Council urged journalists to dig deeper through investigative reporting that exposes financiers, amplifies community voices, and pressures policymakers.
“Our credibility depends on balanced reporting, free of sensationalism, while ensuring transparency and accountability in the sector,” NUJ FCT Chairperson, Grace Ike, said.
