Kaduna State has secured a major boost to its solid minerals development drive with the signing of two Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) valued at $500 million with the Africa Finance Corporation (AFC), marking a significant step towards expanding the state’s mining sector and attracting long-term investment.
The agreements were signed during a strategic meeting between Kaduna State Governor, Senator Uba Sani, and the President and Chief Executive Officer of the Africa Finance Corporation, Mallam Samaila Zubairu, alongside senior officials from both organisations. The first MoU, signed between the Africa Finance Corporation and the Kaduna Mining Development Company (KMDC), establishes a framework for identifying, developing and financing high-potential mining assets across Kaduna State while preserving the state’s ownership of its mineral resources.
The second agreement, involving KMDC, AFC and the Jema’a Resource Project (JRP), is designed to advance the Gidan Waya mining project in Jema’a Local Government Area from exploration to commercial production. The project will combine AFC’s investment capacity with JRP’s technical expertise to accelerate development.
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He reiterated his administration’s commitment to making Kaduna Nigeria’s leading investment destination through economic reforms, improved security, stronger institutions and responsible resource development. The governor said recent confirmation of commercially significant deposits of Platinum Group Metals (PGMs), in addition to gold, lithium, nickel, copper, cobalt, silver and rare earth elements, presents a unique opportunity to diversify the state’s economy, deepen industrialisation and create jobs.
Sani also welcomed AFC’s confidence in Kaduna State, noting that the corporation had recognised the institutional reforms undertaken by his administration as key factors in attracting long-term investment and industrial development. He commended the Chief Executive Officer of Anka Metals, Nere Emiko, for acknowledging Kaduna State’s consistency in mineral exploration and for noting that KMDC is the first state-owned mining company in Nigeria to secure an exploration and development partnership with the Africa Finance Corporation.
The governor further disclosed that the Director-General of the Nigerian Geological Survey Agency (NGSA) praised Kaduna State for becoming the first state in the country to engage the agency throughout the resource discovery and exploration process, describing the state’s transparent, accountable and science-driven approach as a model for others.