As a measure to increase revenue generation to the nation’s federation account, the Revenue Mobilisation, Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC) has expressed strong concern for the development of the solid mineral sector.
Mr Elias Mbam, chairman of the commission, told the News Agency of Nigeria on Tuesday in Abuja, saying it has stated to create awareness to that effect.
According to him, every state in the country has one form of mineral resource or the other that can be used to generate revenue.
“We are carrying out advocacy campaign to states, local governments and Nigeria in general that we should make use of what is available to us; basically every state has one form of mineral or the other.
“This country has the potential that if these potential are developed, such as solid minerals, they can generate more money than the money from oil and gas.
“We recommend that the money realised from other natural resources sometimes should be used to develop and fund the solid mineral sector because it is vital to our social economic development,’’ he said.
Mbam said that diversifying the economy would help to generate more revenue and that solid mineral was the commission’s major area of diversification.
He explained that solid mineral had started contributing to the Federation Account since his first tenure in office and money generated from the sector had been shared accordingly.
The chairman said that any state that generated revenue through solid mineral got 13 per cent of the money generated, adding that Ogun State got the highest because it generated the highest revenue.
“The 13 per cent derivation is also applied in the sharing, it is not exclusive to oil and gas, it’s for any natural activity that generates money to the federation account,’’ he said.
He said that all the states had the potential to generate revenue from solid minerals.
“So we are encouraging them to key in and develop solid minerals in their areas,’’ he said.
According to Mbam lots of revenues are lost either by theft or collusion in the sector, and that the commission will block all these leakages as that will help to enhance the revenue generated from the states.
He said the commission was highly committed to the President Buhari’s agenda of taking 100 million Nigerians out of poverty.
Mbam added that the ways to actualise this was by diversification as well as the development of the agriculture and solid mineral sectors.
(NAN)
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