Folalumi Alaran in Abuja
The Executive Secretary and Chief Executive Officer of the Solid Minerals Development Fund (SMDF), Hajiya Fatima Umaru Shinkafi, on Wednesday unveiled the Early-Stage Mineral Exploration and Research Grant Endowment (EMERGE) Programme, a new funding initiative designed to unlock investment in mineral exploration, critical minerals development and research across Nigeria.
Speaking at the launch of the programme in Abuja, Shinkafi said EMERGE was created to address one of the most persistent challenges facing the mining sector—the shortage of early-stage capital for exploration and research.
She explained that the competitively awarded grant facility would provide catalytic funding to explorers, universities and research institutions, enabling promising projects to advance from concept to commercial viability.
According to her, the initiative forms part of a broader strategy by the SMDF to reposition mining finance, de-risk investments and attract private capital into the solid minerals sector.
Shinkafi also disclosed that the Fund’s partnership with the Africa Finance Corporation (AFC) had facilitated a landmark 1.5 million metric tonnes-per-annum alumina refinery project, which she described as the largest funding commitment in the history of the SMDF and the biggest mining investment ever recorded in Nigeria.
She said the project is expected to significantly boost national output, increase Gross Domestic Product, generate foreign exchange earnings and deepen local value addition in the mining industry.
“The SMDF exists to unlock financing across the full life of a mineral project. EMERGE strengthens the earliest link in that chain by funding exploration and research, while initiatives such as the alumina refinery secure value addition and returns at the top of the chain,” she said.
Shinkafi further revealed that the Fund had supported the sourcing and delivery of responsibly mined and internationally certified gold to the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), helping to strengthen the country’s reserves and support macroeconomic stability.
She noted that the EMERGE programme, the AFC-SMDF Project Development Facility and the alumina refinery project collectively represent practical steps towards building a diversified economy anchored on solid minerals.
“The era of exporting our mineral wealth in raw form is drawing to a close. With the launch of EMERGE, we are taking another deliberate step towards a sector that explores with confidence, adds value at home and rewards the nation that owns these resources,” she added.
Meanwhile, the Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dr. Dele Alake, reiterated the federal government’s commitment to ending the export of raw minerals and promoting value addition across the mining value chain.
Alake, whose Seven-Point Agenda prioritises reliable geological data, local processing, transparency and investor confidence, said the reform framework is aimed at repositioning the mining sector as a key driver of economic diversification and industrial growth. He noted that initiatives such as EMERGE and other ongoing reforms align with the broader objective of maximising Nigeria’s mineral resources for national development.
