The Senate Committee on Solid Minerals Development has thrown its weight behind the Solid Minerals Development Fund’s new EMERGE programme, calling it a “timely and visionary” step to unlock Nigeria’s mining potential.
Senator Ekong Sampson, Chairman of the Senate Committee, gave the endorsement Wednesday, while speaking sideline at the official launch of the Early-Stage Minerals Exploration & Research Grant Endowment at Transcorp Hotels, Abuja.
EMERGE, an initiative of the Ministry of Solid Minerals Development through the SMDF, is designed to fund early-stage exploration and geoscience research. The Senate chair said the grant addresses a key bottleneck: many promising mineral projects stall at the early stage due to lack of funding, poor geological data, and limited technical capacity.
“By seeking to bridge these gaps, this initiative represents a major step towards strengthening exploration activities, promoting responsible mining practices and advancing geoscience research and development in Nigeria,” Sampson said.
He delivered goodwill greetings from the Senate and commended Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dr. Dele Alake, SMDF management, and stakeholders for driving the intervention.
Sen. Ekong assured investors and operators that the National Assembly will provide legislative support, policy frameworks, and institutional backing to grow the sector. He noted that solid minerals, if properly harnessed, can drive industrialisation, create jobs, generate forex, and diversify the economy.
“The Senate is fully aligned with initiatives such as EMERGE that seek to deepen involvement, investment, innovation, research and capacity development within the minerals ecosystem,” he said.
He also praised the “cordial and productive working relationship” between his committee and the ministry, saying such synergy is critical to transforming the sector.
Nigeria has large deposits of gold, lithium, lead-zinc, barite, and other minerals spread across the country. But underfunded exploration has kept much of it unmapped and unexploited. The EMERGE grant aims to fund early research so projects can attract larger investment later.
The Chairman expressed hope the programme will “serve as a catalyst for innovation, discovery, investment and responsible exploitation of our mineral resources for the benefit of present and future generations.”
He congratulated the SMDF and the ministry on the milestone and wished the programme “enduring success.”
With the Senate now publicly aligned, EMERGE gets both funding and policy momentum as Nigeria pushes to make solid minerals the next big pillar beyond oil.
