Nigeria’s solid minerals exports increased to N354 billion in 2025, representing a significant rise from N117.29 billion recorded in 2023, according to the Solid Minerals Development Fund (SMDF).
Executive Secretary and Chief Executive Officer of SMDF, Hajiya Fatima Shinkafi, disclosed this during the maiden Annual Lecture of the Faculty of Physical and Earth Sciences at the University of Lagos. She said the sector’s performance reflects the impact of reforms introduced under the Federal Government’s drive to increase mining’s contribution to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) from less than one per cent to three per cent by 2030.
According to Shinkafi, revenue generated for the Federation Account also rose from N16 billion in 2023 to over N70 billion in 2025, while the sector recorded a real growth rate of 33.5 per cent in 2025.
She noted that Nigeria possesses more than 44 commercially viable minerals across over 500 locations nationwide, including gold, lithium, iron ore, coal, bitumen, barite and gemstones. Despite this potential, she said the sector remains largely underdeveloped.
Shinkafi explained that reforms launched in 2023 focused on attracting private investment, strengthening geoscience data, formalising artisanal mining, tackling illegal mining, revoking dormant licences and promoting local value addition.
She further disclosed that the reforms have attracted about $2.6 billion in fresh investment commitments, including a $1.3 billion alumina refinery project described as the largest mining investment in Nigeria’s history.
The Federal Government is targeting a 25-fold expansion of the sector to about N30 trillion by 2030 as part of efforts to diversify the economy and reduce dependence on oil revenue.
