The Federal Ministry of Solid Minerals Development is now to be known as Federal Ministry of Mines and Steel Development, the minister, Kayode Fayemi has announced after the Federal Executive Council (FEC) Meeting on Wednesday.
The renaming of the Ministry may be due to the new drive of the Federal Government to focus on steel development as part of its diversification drive.
The Federal Government had on 1st August taken over the management of the Ajaokuta Steel Company and signed a renegotiated concession agreement with Global Steel Holdings Ltd for the Nigerian Iron Ore Mining Company (NIOMCO), Itakpe.
With the agreement meant that government are in control of all past contracts, meaning that all the contract and hindrances to the company has been suspended.
Experts believe that with the takeover, there would be no further delay to the diversification plan of the federal government with focus on the steel industry.
Negotiations leading to the signing of the contracts had begun since 2008 but had been hindered by a myriad of crisis and litigation.
However many insist that the FG lacked the political will to diversify the economy or kick start the steel industry.
Nigeria is said to have spent over $6 billion on the Ajaokuta Steel Company without any result.
But, Fayemi assured that President Muhammadu Buhari was indeed committed to his pledge to diversify the nation’s economy and to invest heavily in the mining and the steel industry.
Fayemi said that $7 billion would be required to kick start the solid mineral sector.
The minister expressed hope that the move will help the country generate employments and help the diversification agenda.
