Ebonyi State Commissioner for Solid Minerals Development, Chief Chinedu Nkah on Wednesday tasked the federal government to create a framework that will encourage responsible investment that will also protecting local interests noting that with such framework in place the country could derive greater economic benefits from its abundant mineral resources.

The Commissioner made the call while addressing journalists in Abakaliki as part of activities marking the 2026 Mining Week further stated that such framework should equally address regulatory bottlenecks making case for comprehensive overhaul of Nigeria’s mining laws to empower state and local governments, as well as host communities, to exercise greater control over mineral exploration and exploitation.

He argued that the existing legal framework undermines local accountability, constrains investment and exposes communities to environmental hazards.

Nkah further argued that the current framework, which places mining licences largely under the control of the Federal Government, limited the capacity of sub-national authorities and host communities to regulate mining activities and hold operators accountable for their environmental and social responsibilities.

He advocated a shift in the constitutional allocation of mining powers from the Exclusive Legislative List to the Residual Legislative List, which, in his view, would give states, local governments and communities greater authority to regulate the sector.

“The mining sector needs to be seen from the community to the federal level, not the other way round,” the commissioner said, insisting that the law should be restructured to give host communities a stronger voice in decisions affecting their land, livelihoods and environment.

According to him, the existing arrangement allows investors to obtain mining licences through the federal cadastral system without adequate involvement of state and local authorities, thereby creating jurisdictional conflicts and weakening accountability at the grassroots.

He maintained that a reformed legal framework would make mining operators more responsive to host communities, particularly in the areas of environmental protection, workers’ welfare, infrastructure development and compliance with Community Development Agreements (CDAs).

Nkah lamented that abandoned mining pits had become a serious safety concern in some parts of the state, noting that operators sometimes extracted minerals and left excavation sites without adequately reclaiming the land.

He warned that such practices exposed residents to avoidable accidents, including the risk of people and vehicles falling into abandoned pits.

The commissioner argued that mining companies would be more accountable to affected communities if state and local authorities had stronger regulatory powers and a more direct role in the licensing and monitoring processes.

He also called for reforms to address the challenges facing artisanal and small-scale miners, including inadequate technical capacity, limited access to finance and the difficulty of operating within the formal regulatory system.

According to him, providing legitimate artisanal miners with access to funding, technical support and legal recognition would encourage safer mining practices, reduce fatalities and help bring more operators into the formal economy.

Nkah further criticised aspects of the licensing regime that, he said, allowed companies to acquire extensive mineral concessions without necessarily possessing the capacity to develop all the resources covered by their licences.

He said the practice could prevent other capable investors from accessing mineral deposits and slow the development of areas with substantial mineral potential.

The commissioner called for a review of licensing and renewal procedures to ensure that mineral concessions were used productively and that operators demonstrated the technical and financial capacity to develop their holdings.

On relations between mining companies and host communities, Nkah identified inadequate awareness among some community leaders, alleged corruption and the exploitation of local vulnerabilities as factors undermining the implementation of development agreements.

He accused some community leaders of allegedly accepting payments from mining companies at the expense of projects intended to benefit their people.

Using the example of a proposed one-kilometre concrete road, the commissioner said a community development project estimated to cost N400 million could be undermined if a community representative accepted N100 million in a private arrangement instead of insisting on the agreed project.

He, however, maintained that responsibility for ensuring equitable community benefits should not rest exclusively on host communities, stressing that mining companies must also fulfil their obligations and operate transparently.

Nkah said the Ebonyi State Government had intensified engagements with mining firms and host communities to improve cooperation, promote compliance with development agreements and minimise disputes arising from mining operations.

He disclosed that the state had also been inspecting mining sites to assess operators’ performance, particularly in relation to workers’ welfare, operational standards and environmental responsibility.

According to him, several companies visited by the government had expressed satisfaction with the business environment in the state, which he described as conducive to private-sector investment.

The commissioner attributed the improved relationship between the government and mining operators to sustained engagement, adding that the administration was working to ensure that companies understood their obligations to their host communities.

He said the government was equally educating communities on their rights and responsibilities to enable them to participate more effectively in negotiations with mining firms.

Nkah urged community leaders to ensure that agreements with mining companies were negotiated transparently and reflected the genuine development priorities of residents.

The commissioner described the 2026 Mining Week, themed “Unlocking Investment and Growth through Partnerships,” as an opportunity for government officials, investors, mining operators, professional bodies and other stakeholders to examine challenges affecting the sector and develop strategies for sustainable growth.

He said activities marking the event in Ebonyi included engagements with mining companies and host communities to review relationships between the parties and encourage compliance with existing community development commitments.

Nkah maintained that Nigeria could derive greater economic benefits from its abundant mineral resources if the country addressed regulatory bottlenecks and created a framework that encouraged responsible investment while protecting local interests.