MMSD Organises Retreat for Board Members

As part of its efforts to streamline the activities of the Solid Mineral Development Fund (SMDF) and support its operations in order to enable it deliver on its mandate, the Ministry of Mines and Steel Development ( MMSD) has organised a two-day interactive special meeting for its Board members and Management of the SMDF to enable it present its Strategic Plan of Action for ratification.

The retreat, noted the Minister of State, MMSD, Hon. Abubakar Bwari, was a deliberate effort by the ministry to provide the needed support to establish a governance structure for the SMDF to enable it deliver on its mandate.

Bwari charged the Board to come up with a functional governance structure within the framework of the Act establishing the SMDF so as to facilitate its immediate operationalisation.

He made reference to the recently concluded Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (ERGP) focus Labs which recommended that the SMDF be provided with N200 billion seed capital in addition to the earlier plans for raising $600m in bond.

According to him, “I call on the Board of the SMDF to exploit the opportunity provided by this retreat to ensure that such a structure is fashioned out so that the SMDF can deliver on its mandate.”

He said the Ministry was more determined to pursue the reform initiative contained in the ministry’s roadmap for the growth and development of the Nigerian mining industry and called on all the departments and agencies of the ministry to be committed to giving the SMDF all the support it needs to succeed.

The Permanent Secretary of the Ministry, Dr. Abdulkadri Muazu in his opening remarks stressed that the meeting was aimed at educating the SMDF as a parastatal of the ministry about its relationship with the ministry, the powers, functions and duties and responsibilities of the Board and the management which he believed was fundamental to the effective functioning of the SMDF.