Pix: Dele Alake

By Ahmed Dikko, Abuja

The Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dele Alake, has explained that urgency, economic necessity and national security considerations informed the rapid establishment of the NSCDC Mining Marshals to tackle illegal mining across Nigeria.

Alake said the decision was driven primarily by the escalating scale of illegal mining activities, which had resulted in significant loss of national revenue, environmental degradation and insecurity in several mining communities.

He explained that Nigeria was losing substantial income from the solid minerals sector due to widespread illegal extraction and smuggling, adding that the creation of the Mining Marshals was a deliberate strategy to block revenue leakages and strengthen government control over mineral resources.

According to him, another key motivation was the need to halt what he described as unpatriotic activities by individuals and networks undermining national development through illegal exploitation of solid minerals for personal gain.

The minister stated that the Federal Government could not afford to wait for the lengthy process of constitutional amendment required to establish a full-fledged paramilitary agency dedicated to mining enforcement, given the urgency of the situation on the ground.

He noted that illegal mining had become increasingly organised, with operators developing sophisticated networks that were difficult to dismantle using existing regulatory structures alone.

Alake explained that the Mining Marshals were therefore created as an immediate operational response within the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, designed to provide a rapid enforcement mechanism to secure mining sites and protect national assets.

He further stated that the unit was also intended to improve investor confidence in the sector by ensuring that licensed operators are protected from encroachment and unlawful competition from illegal miners.

The minister stressed that strengthening enforcement through the Mining Marshals would enhance revenue generation for the federal government, create a more transparent mining environment and support broader economic diversification efforts.

He reaffirmed the government’s commitment to sanitising the mining sector, insisting that the Mining Marshals would continue to play a critical role in blocking illegal activities, protecting national resources and ensuring that Nigeria’s solid minerals sector contributes optimally to national development.