Nigeria has taken another step in developing the minerals and mining sector and raising investor confidence in the industry with the provision of modern geodata infrastructure.
The federal government on April 27 commissioned the National Geodata Centre (NGC) at the headquarters of the Nigerian Geological Survey (NGSA) in Abuja, where the facility is domiciled.
With the geodata centre, Nigeria has established a modern, digital accessible infrastructure for the minerals and mining sector.
Funded and executed under the World Bank-assisted Mineral Sector Support for Economic Diversification (MinDiver) Project, the geodata centre is conceived as a one-stop shop for geo-scientific data and information for investors, regulators and other stakeholders in the minerals and mining sector.
The Centre will increase visibility of the investment potential in Nigeria’s mining sector and work in synergy with the National Steel Raw Materials Exploration Agency (NSRMEA), Kaduna, and related establishments to enhance greater accessibility to geoscience data of Nigeria.
The centre provides real-time modern digitally accessible information on minerals available in the country, their locations, their sample size and other information that stakeholders require in making their decisions about investment in the sector.
To ensure best standards, the British Geological Survey (BGS) United Kingdom, was contracted to build the centre.
Project manager, British Geological Survey (BGS) , Dr Joseph Mankelow said the National Geodata Centre was developed by the British Geological Survey to attract direct foreign investment in extractives. He said geodata is important because that is what gives investors confidence and attracts investment in mineral exploration and development.
He said a National Geodata Centre helps in demonstrating the mineral potential of a country and represents the long-term national geosciences knowledge base essential for demonstrating mineral potential.
Mankelow further stated that geodata management was very important because geological data are the heart of any geological surveys since many geological surveys will have physical collections of legacy data that represent an irreplaceable knowledge base.
According to him, digital capture of such data is vital and staff must have the skills and knowledge to acquire, manage and interpret such data, and new data must then be integrated with the legacy datasets in a continuous process where centralised digital Geodata centres allow wider access for data and information, addition of new data and analysis of datasets
He further explained that the NGSA and the BGS had the responsibility for managing geodata on behalf of the nations of Britain and Nigeria, noting that a well-managed digital geodata represents a vital baseline for de-risking extractives investment, infrastructure and environmental management.
He added that the journey to establishing a National Geodata Centre for Nigeria began in August 2019 when the BGS commenced the project with the Ministry of Mines and Steel Development.
The BGS, he said, comes into the arrangement with rich history, and its objective was to establish a “complete and comprehensive national electronic geodata bank” which “will assist in quick and effective information management.”
The component of the geodata centre include experts in data processing, data security, data storage, ingestion and metadata, IT, data access and use, digitisation, databases and applications etc. Others, he said, include data storage, digital data storage, databases, IT network, Back up and archive, storage for physical data – records and samples, etc.
LEADERSHIP Friday reports that the establishment of the National Geodata Centre shows Nigeria’s preparedness to showcase its rich mineral potential and attract local and international investors by providing the enabling environment through open access to information about mineral deposits in the country for the overall growth of the economy.
Minister of mines and steel development, Arc. Olamilekan Adegbite, who performed the commissioning process, described it as a major milestone in the nation’s mining subsector, and expressed delight that it was realised in his tenure as minister.
According to him, the coming of the geodata centre will put Nigeria in higher league as a mining nation, adding that it will attract local and international investors into the sector.
He pointed out that with the development, investors can now access mining data online without even coming to the ministry, adding that mining companies of many countries usually decide where to go and invest their money based on the availability of data so as to minimise their risks and maximize their profit.
He said, “A geodata centre represents the long term national geoscience knowledge base essential for identifying the mineral potentialities of a country. It has particular focus on data relevant to the mineral sector with the aim of improving access by investors to data and information,” adding that the centre will continue to update and upload data and information on its platform continuously.
According to him, most notable mining countries, such as Australia, Canada, and Namibia in Africa are doing well because investors have access to geodata.
The minister appreciated the World Bank for assisting Nigeria through the MinDiver Project, to attain data that would be able to attract the requisite investment into the mining sector.
He commended NGSA for the various milestones achieved by the agency under him as minister, one of such is the National Integrated Mineral Exploration Project (NIMEP).
Speaking at the event, the permanent secretary in the ministry, Dr Oluwatoyin Akinlade, who was represented by the director of human resources in the ministry, Dr Muhhammad Kabir Suleiman (MNI), said the federal government attached much importance to the geodata centre.
“The Nigerian Geodata Centre was conceived as a national reliable repository of digital geoscience information on Nigeria. It was designed to be robust, comprehensive, easy to find and readily accessible.
“Due to its importance as a one-stop shop for geo-scientific data and information, the British Geological Survey (BGS), UK, was contracted to establish this high level infrastructure that provides security, resilience, access to mining investors, researchers, development experts and the general public,” she said.
She explained that the MinDiver Project had ensured that the staff of both agencies have been trained to manage the system and that the British Geological Survey was tasked with importing Nigerian historical (colonial) geological data from its archives and establishments in the UK into the new Nigerian Geodata Centre.
She pointed out that this was another remarkable activity funded through the MinDiver Project.
The director-general, NGSA, Abdulrazak Garba, appreciated the departing minister for providing the right leadership and enabling environment for the agency to succeed, while also commending the support of the World Bank-assisted MinDiver Project and the technical partners for the success of the project.
