The Bauchi State Government said on Friday that it has concluded plans to establish a geo-science data base to determine the quantity and quality of solid minerals in the state.
The state’s commissioner for Mines, Power and Environment, Dr Audu Bogoro made this know in an interview in Kaduna.
Bogor, who spoke on the side line of a two-day national consultative meeting on validation of roadmap for the solid mineral sector, added that the aim was to attract private investment in the sector.
“Bauchi State is richly endowed with solid mineral resources, but there is the need to determine its commercial value to be able to tap its full benefits.
“It is on this note that the state government is making efforts to establish a geosciences data base to determine the quantity and quality of the mineral.
“We will thereafter make the information known to the world and attract investors to come and invest in the exploration and extraction of minerals,“ he said.
The commissioner added that the state government had equally approved a visibility study to establish mineral commodity market for processing and selling of minerals products.
He also said that the Bauchi Mining Synergy and Exploration Ltd. (BAMSEL), a company established for the development of the sector, was receiving a lot of attention from the current government, in terms of funding and logistics.
On illegal mining, Bogoro said that the state would partner with a consultancy firm to legalise the activities of illegal miners.
“We are trying to see how we can legalise and integrate illegal miners in the state so they can operate without fear.
“They will be trained and formed into cooperative societies and be given some incentives so they can be well established.
“We will ensure that all miners in the state follow the due process and legalise their mining activities, “Bogor said.
