Following the ongoing development of Nigeria’s solid minerals sector, France has pledged to remain a formidable ally in offering expertise and support to help unlock the industry’s full potential and foster sustainable growth.
The French Ambassador to Nigeria, Marc Fonbaustier, reportedly gave the assurance during a courtesy visit to the Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dr. Dele Alake.
According to Punch, the statement by the Minister’s Special Assistant on Media, Segun Tomori, announced the visit on Sunday.
Tomori said Ambassador Fonbaustier emphasised France’s keen interest in investing in Nigeria’s rapidly growing solid minerals sector, aligning with the country’s roadmap for mining development.
“We are fully committed to supporting Nigeria’s roadmap for mining development, with a keen interest in investing in the rapidly developing solid minerals sector,” he said.
Accompanying the Ambassador, Deputy Head, of the Regional Economic Department of the French Embassy, Carole Libreton expressed France’s readiness to fund projects in the mining corporation and collaborate with the ministry to galvanize French companies for the development of the mining value chain.
Reacting to the visit, Ambassador Dr Alake acknowledged France’s frontline position among prospective stakeholders who have shown interest in the solid minerals sector.
According to him, France has shown “enthusiasm, commitment, and readiness to implement tangible projects”.
“Through key initiatives in the solid minerals sector backed by actionable goals with clear timelines,” he said a long-standing and robust bilateral relationship between Nigeria and France will be further enhanced.
The Minister reiterated that the core agenda of President Tinubu’s policy initiatives has been the diversification of the economy with emphasis on solid minerals development.
He highlighted the imperative of continued engagement with the French team to identify serious French companies interested in the mining sector whilst also fine-tuning areas of collaboration to concretize partnership based on the earlier signed MOU.
It will be recalled that Nigeria and France signed an MOU late last year on the heels of President Tinubu’s state visit to France to develop joint projects for the promotion and diversification of the critical minerals value chain with emphasis on technical assistance, capacity building, and remediation of over 2,000 abandoned pits.
The statement further noted that on Ambassador Marc Fonbaustier’s entourage was the French embassy’s head of the regional economic department, Florent Mangin, and Deputy head of the regional economic department, Carole Lebreton.
