By Adedapo Adesanya
The Nigeria Mining Cadastre Office will be partnering with the World Bank to upgrade its system for foreign investors to apply online for mining licences in Nigeria.
This was disclosed by the Director-General of the Mining Office, Mr Obadiah Nkom, in a statement, when he received a delegation of Optiva Resources Limited, a London-based investment organisation, alongside its investment advisers, NPL Advisors.
The statement read in part, “He said that the government collaborated with the World Bank to upgrade the Agency’s system and it is compatible with the rest of the world, adding that with electronic Mining Cadastre (eMC+) application based system, a ready-made platform has been provided for investors all over the world to come on board.”
Mr Nkom was further quoted as saying, “We upgraded from regular polygon to the online system we have now. We are talking about real-time administration and these are the series of upgrades that will align with best international practices.”
He added, “With the new system, you can apply for a mineral title from anywhere in the world. Currently, we are crossing and dotting wherever is necessary for us to have a sustainable system.”
The MCO DG further stressed that public-private partnerships can drive huge investment into mining.
He encouraged investors to leverage the digitalised system and explore the Nigerian mineral sector.
He said that Mineral Titles, such as Exploration Licence, Quarry Lease, Small Scale Mining Lease, Water Use Permit, and Mining Lease are open to foreign investors.
Mr Nkom added that offices in the six geopolitical zones have been opened to equally receive applications from different zones and states.
Dipo Olowookere