Former Minister of State for Environment, Ibrahim Jibril, has warned that unchecked exploitation and unsustainable mining are posing a grave threat to Nigeria’s economy, environment and national security.
Mr Jibril, who is now the Emir of Nasarawa State, disclosed this at the 3rd Nigeria Socio-Ecological Alternatives Convergence (NSAC) in Abuja, organised by the Health of Mother Earth Foundation (HOMEF) on Wednesday.
He said communities across the country are grappling with the devastating effects of unsustainable mining, rampant deforestation, land degradation, pollution, biodiversity loss and the indiscriminate exploitation of natural resources.
He noted that the consequences of these activities extend beyond environmental damage, undermining livelihoods, threatening food security and public health, fuelling social tensions and insecurity, and jeopardising the well-being of future generations.
“Our focus extends beyond the environment to the very survival, dignity and future of our people. Forests that have sustained livelihoods and biodiversity for generations are disappearing at an alarming rate, while poorly regulated and illegal mining activities continue to displace communities and destroy farmlands and water sources,” Mr Jibril said.
He acknowledged the economic potential of the state’s abundant mineral deposits, including lithium, tantalite and rare earth minerals, adding that such resources must be managed responsibly, transparently and in ways that protect host communities and the environment.
“Development should never come at the cost of human lives, environmental integrity, or the future of generations yet unborn,” he said.
Also speaking, HOMEF Executive Director, Nnimmo Bassey, warned that Nigeria’s escalating deforestation, destructive mining activities and weak environmental governance create criminal fiefdoms and deepening human insecurity across the country.
Mr Bassey cautioned against the growing excitement surrounding recent discoveries of critical minerals in Kaduna State and increasing investments in lithium exploration and processing, warning that Nigeria risks repeating the mistakes of decades of oil extraction in the Niger Delta.
“We are yet to have serious conversations on what sort of development we desire,” he said.
According to him, the country loses between 250,000 and 300,000 hectares of forest annually, equivalent to 350,000 to 420,000 football fields every year, noting that primary forests now account for only 1.3 per cent of Nigeria’s landmass.
He warned that at the current rate of depletion, the country could lose its forests entirely by 2052.
He said mining activities across Nigeria have frequently resulted in polluted waterways, degraded farmlands, abandoned mine sites and displaced communities, with the economic benefits rarely reaching affected populations.
“There is no justice in replacing fossil fuel sacrifice zones with so-called green mineral zones extracted in the same destructive manner. A nation cannot claim to be secure when its people lack clean water, fertile soils, healthy forests, safe food and safe air,” he said.
On his part, Director of the African Studies Centre at the University of Michigan, Omolade Adunbi, warned that Nigeria’s growing pursuit of critical minerals for the global energy transition could recreate the environmental devastation and social conflicts associated with decades of oil extraction in the Niger Delta if not properly governed.
“My argument is that critical minerals would eventually become the new oil, and communities that are host to these minerals would face the same consequences, if not worse, than the people of the Niger Delta have had to contend with for over 70 years,” he said.
