NEPC tasks solid mineral sector on export competitiveness

NEPC has tasked stakeholders in Plateau solid mineral sector to accelerate efforts in enhancing export of products.

 

The Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC) has tasked stakeholders in Plateau solid mineral sector to accelerate efforts in enhancing export of products.

The council gave the charge on Thursday in Jos during a workshop on “Driving Solid Minerals Export Through Standards Documentation for Export Competitiveness” .

The workshop is aimed at tackling the challenges of stakeholders in the sector, from the extraction processes to the export to international markets.

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Mrs Nonye Ayeni, The Executive Director/CEO of NEPC, who spoke on the importance of the training, stressed that there was need for stakeholders to meet up with the international standards for export of solid minerals.

“I have witnessed the pivotal role that exports play in driving sustainable economic growth. However, the journey from the extraction to the international market is fraught with challenges.

“One of the most significant hurdles is the lack of understanding of the export procedures and required documentation. These factors often deter many potential exporters or result in losses due to non-compliance with international trade standards”.

“This programme is therefore, designed to address the challenges in the solid mineral sector by focusing on export procedures, export documentation, and opportunities for exportation,” Ayeni said

Similarly, Mrs Julie Onmoke, the North-Central Director of NEPC, who challenged the stakeholders to be deliberate in their export drive, urged them to go beyond just harvesting and polishing, to selling to the international markets.

“Plateau is a state that is richly endowed with so many solid minerals, it will be very good if we can exploit that benefit and increase our portfolio in terms of the minerals we are harvesting, harnessing or polishing to also selling.

“Because at the end of the day, when we get these minerals, what we intend to do is to sell them abroad.

“We gain more when we export, so beyond getting the minerals, beyond the polishing, what we want to see is a deliberate export drive in the sector,” Onmoke said.

Some of the beneficiaries of the training, thanked the NEPC for the opportunity the workshop offered.

They highlighted some of their challenges to include power supply, security, finance, and dearth of equipment, among others.