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AfriTEX calls for policy framework on smart cities

Published

5 years ago

October 16, 2021

The Africa Information Technology Exhibition and Empowerment Initiative (AfriTEX), an NGO, has called for a policy framework that would drive an initiative towards the country becoming a smart city and digital economy.

Mr Oyesola Oworu, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of AfriTEX disclosed this at a news conference in Abuja on Friday.

Oworu said the organisation is set to hold a summit from Nov. 2 to Nov. 4, a stakeholders’ forum that would focus on how to integrate technology into how the cities function and as well provide solutions on how city develops.

According to him, stakeholders from private and public sectors as well as professional bodies would deliberate on proffering a policy framework that would become an act of government to transit to smart cities.

“Technology is changing the ways cities and economies evolve, helping to respond to challenges of rapid urbanisation and pressure that is exercised on infrastructure. AfriTEX is committed to working with stakeholders to promoting digital economy for Nigeria and Africa at large.

“The forum is expected to identify substantial opportunities to build inclusive sustainable smart economies through leadership and collaboration to maximise the interoperability of new technologies across different industries.

“This mega forum will be an innovative platform in promoting smart cities development and digital economy that are in sync with the latest innovations and to understand the potential of implementing cutting-edge smart, safe, secure and sustainable digital economy,” he said.

Oworu, therefore, called on the government to join the rest of the world to key into smart solutions to tackle the insecurity of the country and have better surveillance system for the country.

Meanwhile, Mr Miebaka Adoki, Chairman of AfriTEX, said there was need to have a smart government who would put together documentations that would guide the development of a smart city.

Adoki said that the idea of having a smart city by a nation was to use technology to make the life of the citizens easier.

He urged the country to take a cue from China whose entire economy was driven by technology saying that as of today, China was the smartest nation in the entire world.
According to him, 10 things make a city smart and among these are the functionality of the building, policy of government, environmental factors and the Internet of Things, among others.

“How prepared is Nigeria to enter the era of smart solutions? No nation will wait for Nigeria because the smart solutions has come to stay.

“ Cities all over the world is emerging to becoming smart and nobody will wait for Nigeria. We cannot in anyway avoid this because it is for the uplift and development of human.

“ We need to catch up with the rest of the world and be in tune with what is happening around the globe.

“ So, as a country, we need to come together to provide a policy framework that will lead to a policy direction for the country to have smart cities, “he said.

(NAN)

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Alake Inaugurates Nigeria-US Solid Minerals Committee, Dismisses $700bn Claim, Says No Assets Sold

Published

12 hours ago

October 28, 2026

The Gleamer

Joel Ajayi

The Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dr. Dele Alake, on Tuesday inaugurated the Nigeria-United States Committee on Strategic Cooperation in the Solid Minerals Sector in Abuja, dismissing reports that Nigeria sold $700 billion worth of solid minerals to the US.

The inauguration followed the strategic cooperation framework established between Nigeria and the United States during the 81st United Nations General Assembly in New York.

In a statement issued on Wednesday by the Head PRESS and Public Relations Department Mrs. Kania Maliki Andeyaba stated that, Alake in the Memorandum of Understanding, MoU, signed with the US is a government-to-government platform to facilitate business-to-business engagements between American investors and Nigerian local operators, not a sale of assets.

Harping on the importance of the solid minerals sector to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s economic diversification agenda, he noted that the administration was committed to reducing dependence on a mono-product economy through the sustainable development of Nigeria’s vast mineral resources.

According to him, the Nigeria–US partnership as a strategic initiative to attract investment, promote technology transfer, strengthen local mineral processing and create employment opportunities.

“There is no sale of any Nigerian asset. There’s nothing exchanging hands,” Alake declared.

“We created a platform to facilitate mingling of US investment ventures with Nigeria’s local operators. It is in the public domain. We signed it in public and published it in four or five national newspapers.”

The Minister said reports claiming the US was coming to take over Nigeria’s minerals and security architecture were untrue at best and products of riotous imagination at worst.

Explaining the policy thrust, Alake said Africa has historically held the short end of the stick in global economic transactions, and Nigeria is determined to change that model.

“We have the resources, the critical elements the world needs to transit to clean energy. So we are creating a new paradigm — you bring your capital, expertise and technology, to match with our natural resources and create a win-win situation . The investor gains, Nigeria gains.’’he said.

Nigeria, he stressed, had operated a mono-cultural economy dependent on oil, while solid minerals were exploited informally — with ores taken “from pit to port” without value addition.

Alake said government has now made local processing mandatory, refusing to grant mineral titles to investors without a clear pathway to processing in Nigeria.

He said the policy led to the springing up of processing factories, including the largest lithium processing plant in West Africa commissioned recently in Nasarawa by the Vice President, and informed the formation of the African Minerals Strategy Group.

Alake noted that investor confidence has returned due to macro-economic reforms by President Bola Tinubu that guarantee security of tenure and repatriation of profits.

He charged the committee to discharge its assignment responsibly, saying its work is strategic to achieving the President’s $1 trillion economy target.

To this end, he told the Committee to ensure effective coordination, identify investment opportunities and translate the framework into measurable outcomes capable of positioning Nigeria as a competitive player in the global solid minerals industry.

In his welcome address, Permanent Secretary of the Ministry, Engr. Faruk Yusuf Yabo, said the inauguration translates growing bilateral engagements into a structured framework for practical cooperation and investment mobilization

Economic Officer at the US Embassy, Jonathan Baas, said President Donald Trump has prioritized three areas for US embassies — energy, artificial intelligence/super intelligence, and critical minerals.

Baas said Washington’s direction is to work with partners to secure critical supply chains while ensuring partners capture value.

“We just signed a contract today on looking into building AI data centres in Nigeria at the Nigerian Economic Summit. That’s the direction Washington wants us to go,” he said.

In his vote of thanks, CEO/Managing Director of Nigeria Solid Minerals Company, NSMC said that the committee

is expected to coordinate implementation, facilitate investment and monitor progress towards achieving the objectives of the Nigeria–US cooperation framework.

The inauguration reinforces the Federal Government’s commitment to repositioning the solid minerals sector as a key driver of economic diversification, industrial development and national prosperity under President Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda.

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