 I've titled my remarks resurrecting our buried prosperity. Resurrecting our buried prosperity. As of 1940, Nigeria was already globally a leading producer of tin, columbite and coal. Potential coal reserves are today estimated to be as high as 3 billion tons. Much of our coal is high-grade, clean and bituminous with a low sulfur and ash content. But even farther back in 1913, gold in commercial quantities had already been found in parts of northern Nigeria and what is now Oshun state. Bitumen was discovered as far back as 1900, mostly in the southwest zone, the bitumen belt covering what are now Oundo, Ogun Lagos and Odo states. And today we have deposits in excess of 42 billion tons. This is the second largest bitumen deposit in the world, and almost twice are all reserves. How about iron ore? We have the 12th largest iron ore deposit in the world, more than 3 billion tons. Besides, the Nigerian Geological Survey Agency confirms that Nigeria has over 44 mineral deposits in commercial quantities in over 500 locations across the 36 states and the federal capital territory of Nigeria. And these minerals range from industrial and energy minerals such as iron ore and coal and gemstones including sapphires, rubies and emeralds. So buried in the ground in various parts of Nigeria are riches that could ensure that no Nigerian is unemployed, underfed or neglected. And this is not mere speculation because before the discovery of oil, Nigeria developed its infrastructure, its roads, its wells, its dams. It provided free education in the western region, for example. From the proceeds of minerals, agriculture and taxes. But with the discovery of oil, these incredible riches have remained buried in the ground for decades. In many parts of the country, you find illegal miners with poor equipment, essentially scraping the surface of these deposits. Some better equipped operators are able to do more, but they largely just exploit cheap labour and pay next to nothing in taxes or royalties and of course cause environmental damage that is never remedied. So it is clear that unless we get the management of our solid mineral resources right, we would continue to live in the terrible paradox of suffering in the midst of plenty. The problems are numerous, but they are solvable. The principle issue is that of the challenges of implementing the regulatory framework. While the Ministry of Mines and Steel has the legislative mandate to regulate mining in the country, many states and local governments have embarked on the imposition of their own rules and regulations on miners in their states, including issuance of registration, permits, community development agreements and memoranda of understanding on miners or with miners. Some state governments in a bid to shore up their revenues impose illegal fees, taxes and levies on foreign and locally licensed and local licensed mining companies and operators. Enforcement of these taxes often leads to the frequent arrests and harassment of licensed miners and their workers and of course closures of mining sites and this happens frequently. Regrettably, such actions by state governments constitute a major disincentive to prospective investors in this sector and invariably jeopardize the efforts of government to actively deepen the mining industry in Nigeria. There's no way this will ever benefit the majority of our people. Then there are of course the huge security concerns that always develop in the struggle for control of mineral resources in poorly regulated or unregulated or ungoverned spaces. Almost invariably, these situations lead to criminal activities and particularly a proliferation of weapons and armed groups and this is true historically and is even more evident now. On the African continent we have examples of how resource extraction can trigger an increase in criminality. In Nigeria, armed banditry, hiring and equipping of armed groups by illegal but powerful mining concerns in many of our resource rich areas is clearly fueled by the chaotic regulatory environment. So it's for these reasons that this strategic engagement with the leadership of the 774 local governments is critical. It is apt and timely especially as a federal government through the Ministry of Mines and Steel seeks to fully implement its robust and wide-ranging remit in policy and legislation. This engagement will certainly help in explaining the regulatory framework to the governments at the community level where most of the mining activities take place. It will enable the Ministry and other stakeholders to get direct feedback from the local governments and those who have to deal with these issues on a daily basis. But where are we today? In 2016 the Ministry of Mines and Steel Development in collaboration with industry stakeholders formulated the roadmap for the growth and development of the Nigerian mining sector. The roadmap addresses some of the tensions between the federal government and sub-national entities in relation to mining. The roadmap which identifies partnership with mining communities as one of the quote critical levels of success states that success in Nigerian mining requires partnership across multiple communities, stakeholders and institutions end of quote and also stresses that the role of state governments as both co-investors and sector champions is critical. It further asserts that a sustainable growth model for the sector can be found only through government innovations and partner actions. For example, community engagement mechanisms, shared investments and co-creation opportunities. Section 19 of the Nigerian Mines and Minerals Act establishes the Minerals, Resource and Environmental Management Committee, MIREMCO. In each state this committee is composed of representatives of the federal, state and local governments and is designed to serve as a platform for fostering synergy in mining operations across all tiers of government. Consequently the Act accords communities the status of co-investors in the development of mineral assets. So the Minerals, Resource and Environmental Management Committees are important in bringing order, fairness, inclusion and equity to mining and its value chain. Mr. President has also mandated the Ministry of Mines and Steel Development to prioritize the orderly and efficient development of seven strategic minerals in the mining roadmap. Namely coal, bitumen, limestone, iron ore, barites, gold and lead and zinc to support local industries and for export of processed mineral products. The Ministry was further mandated to strengthen synergy with the state governments and relevant security agencies for the enhanced security and safety of mining areas. The Ministry is also expected to foster collaboration with the private sector in growing the mining industry in order to create employment opportunities. Recently also as part of our COVID efforts to preserve existing jobs and create new opportunities, 6 billion Naira was approved for the mining sector under the current economic sustainability plan. And this is for the development of mineral processing clusters across six geopolitical zones of the country to promote large scale investment in mineral exploitation. It's gratifying to note that the Ministry has recorded considerable progress in the establishment of these mining processing clusters and on security in mining areas. As part of our broad efforts to re-engineer the national security architecture to more efficiently confront our challenges, the President has recently approved a raft of measures aimed at ensuring the security of mining concerns of mining sites. These measures will be driven by the Office of the National Security Advisor in collaboration with the Ministry of Mines and Steel Development and we believe that this will be hugely significant in creating a safe and enabling environment for the growth of the sector. A few things emerge from the regulatory and policy framework that I've just shared and which of course you've heard quite a bit about in the earlier statements that have been made. And I will also make some suggestions. The first is and this is number one is that mining is constitutionally under the federal government of Nigeria. The second is that mining revenues go to the Federation account and is shared between the federal government, states and local governments. States where resources come from get a 13% revision in addition to their share. The third is that the federal government cannot effectively regulate mining without actively and deliberately working with states, local governments and mineral producing communities. Number four is that the federal government, states and local governments have to jointly develop working arrangements to ensure that mining is attractive to investors, profitable for states and local governments. Not just from proceeds of mining but also from the personal income tax that will be paid to the states by mine workers and the staff of mining companies. The fifth is that the communities where mines are located must also have some direct benefits aside from jobs for their residents. We must find a formula for compensating the communities for environmental degradation and erosion. Number six is that there must also be a framework for ensuring that environmental degradation is remedied. Number seven is that we must discourage the export of raw material, raw minerals beg your pardon. Refining, processing or beneficiation is the only real way to maximize our mineral wealth and create good paying jobs and opportunities for our people. The seventh is that this engagement today should lead to the production of or the fine tuning of a clear working document that spells out with clarity the roles and responsibilities of each party, that is the federal government, the states and local governments and the mining communities. Even where these roles and duties have already been clearly defined in existing legislation or regulations, this is an opportunity to simplify the language, explain the relationships, take inputs on implementation concerns and get everyone's buy-in. We must commend the Ministry of Mines and Steel Development, the Honourable Minister and the Honourable Minister of State Mines and Steel Development for this initiative. I think the Ministry has been very fortunate in having able, dynamic and farsighted ministers since we came into office in 2015. Well done indeed. I can only encourage you to continue to approach your role as the regulator and administrator of the nation's mines and steel sector with open mindedness and flexibility, especially in your collaboration with the states and local governments. I must also urge all officers of the Ministry to rededicate themselves to the realisation of the set target of a 6% contribution of the mining sector to the nation's GDP by 2025. Finally, let me say to all participants that this engagement is one that could be a game changer for mining in Nigeria and it could mean a new era of huge earnings and prosperity for our people from our mining resources. But this will only happen if we adopt a collaborative and cooperative approach. If we work together, we will reap far more than we could ever gain by working alone. And so it's now my special privilege and pleasure to declare open the mid-in addition of this strategic engagement on sustainable mining by the Federal Ministry of Mines and Steel Development with Nigeria's local government chairman and other critical mining stakeholders. I wish you all fruitful engagements. God bless the Federal Republic of Nigeria. Thank you.