The Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dr. Dele Alake, says mindset reorientation is critical to effective governance and sustainable national development.
Dr. Alake stated this when he hosted participants of the Senior Executive Course 47 (2025) from the National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies, NIPSS, in Abuja.
The Minister also urged the Institute to focus its intellectual capacity on reshaping the mental attitude of Nigerians.
“Nothing can go right when the national mindset is wrong,” the Minister stated.
Dr. Alake while commending the institute’s reputation as Nigeria’s top policy think tank urged it to do more in translating ideas into actionable policies that can drive real change.
“We’ve had several development plans in this country, but implementation has often failed due to fragmented approaches,” he noted.
“NIPSS was created to inject deep intellectualism into governance, but there’s clearly a disconnect—either public officials are not engaging enough with its recommendations, or the institute’s outputs are not being rendered in practical, implementable formats” the Minister stated.
Speaking on the mining sector, Dr. Alake decried its long neglect, which has created room for illegal activities and massive loss of national resources.
The minister who expressed confidence in ongoing reforms under the Tinubu administration stated that significant progress has been recorded.
He explained that the newly deployed Mining Marshals have recorded over 300 arrests of illegal miners in less than a year, with about 150 prosecutions underway including foreign nationals and the recovery of 98 illegal mining sites, Nine convictions have so far been secured.
Dr. Alake also lauded the success of the ministry’s cooperative-based model for artisanal miners, saying over 250 cooperatives have been formed to formalize their activities, enhance government oversight, and improve revenue generation through royalties.
“President Tinubu’s reforms are aimed at stopping the systemic bleeding blocking leakages and laying the groundwork for long-term prosperity.” he noted.
Speaking on behalf of the NIPSS delegation, Mr. David Aloh, who described the session with the Minister as “insightful and enriching,” noting that the team had gained valuable understanding of the ministry’s operations, including those of the Nigeria Geological Survey Agency (NGSA) and the Mining Cadastre Office (MCO), especially within the context of Nigeria’s green economy drive.
“On behalf of the Director-General, management, faculty, and participants of Course 47, we deeply appreciate this engagement. The knowledge acquired here will guide us in carrying out our mandate under Mr. President’s directive,” he said.
