NKECHI NAECHE -ESEZOBOR—The solid minerals sector under the President Bola Tinubu’s administration in the last two and half years has attracted about $2.5 billion in foreign direct investment, BusinessTodayNG has learnt.
The Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dele Alake, disclosed this at the ongoing Powering Africa Summit in Washington, D.C., while f urging the United States and African nations to prioritize the creation of regional energy hubs as a strategic means of driving cross-border mining industrialization and strengthening the supply chain of critical minerals needed for the global energy transition.
He stressed that sustainable partnerships with Africa represent the quickest path to meeting the growing global demand for critical minerals.
He went on to call for the development of regional industrial corridors, noting that models such as the Lagos–Abidjan corridor could help unlock vast mineral resources across the continent.
Alake specifically identified the Lagos–Abidjan corridor, spanning Nigeria, Benin, Togo, Ghana, and Côte d’Ivoire, as well as the Walvis Bay Corridor, as critical belts that could transform Africa’s mining landscape.
He explained that such corridors would not only enhance infrastructure and energy access but also deepen regional integration and industrial growth.
“The development of nuclear power in one West African country, for instance, can service an entire corridor. With that in place, local beneficiation, technology transfer, manufacturing, and cross-border industrialisation will naturally follow. If three to five such corridors are developed in Africa, we would significantly advance industrialisation across the continent, creating a win-win outcome for both Africa and the West,” Alake said.
