Nigerian law firm, Greychapel Legal, has unlocked an array of finance opportunities and addressed some of the challenges facing artisanal and small-scale miners in Nigeria.
This happened at a recently hosted high-level webinar titled “Unlocking Potential: Building a Sustainable Mining Finance Ecosystem for Artisanal and Small-Scale Miners (ASM) in Nigeria.”
The event brought together policymakers, industry stakeholders, and financial experts to deliberate on practical strategies for improving access to finance for Nigeria’s ASM sector.
The keynote speaker, Dele Alake, who is the Minister of Solid Minerals Development, emphasized the government’s commitment to fostering an inclusive, transparent, and sustainable mining finance ecosystem.
The Minister spoke through his representative, Akinrogunde Akintunde, Director of Artisanal and Small-Scale Mining at the Ministry.
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Despite their critical contribution to Nigeria’s solid mineral output, ASM operators continue to face barriers such as limited access to finance, informality, exploitation by middlemen, bureaucratic bottlenecks, and marginalization from development initiatives.
“Informality, perception, and risk, these are the three major challenges ASM miners face in accessing financial support,” noted Abdul Abiola, a sector expert. “Yet, these same issues present clear opportunities for targeted reforms.”
Panelists also underscored that the absence of constitutional provisions for ASM, coupled with systemic neglect, has left the sector vulnerable.
Janet Adeyemi, Founder of Women in Mining in Nigeria, stressed, “In balancing formalisation with the realities of small-scale miners, true partnership is the way to go between the government and miners. There should be a shift from enforcement to partner of growth. The government should be seen as enablers and not barriers.”
The webinar spotlighted ongoing government efforts, such as digitization of the Mining Cadastre System to enhance transparency, formalisation programs offering training and licensing, and the establishment of the Solid Mineral Development Fund (SMDF) to catalyze small-scale mining projects.
Public-Private Partnerships (PPP) and tailored financial instruments, including micro-leasing and pooled investment funds, were also highlighted as promising initiatives.
Discussions further explored innovative financing models from other economies. Clever Sithole, Chairman of the African Gemstones and Jewellery Committee under the African Union’s African Minerals Development Centre, advocated “the adoption of a blended financing model to de-risk investment in the mining sector.”
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Similarly, Hebeeb Jaiyeola, Partner, Mining Sector at PwC Nigeria, emphasised cross-industry collaboration: “Solutions cannot be sourced within the mining sector alone; Fintech tools can be used to encourage financiers to invest in the industry if the fintech companies come up with innovative solutions that will help in de-risking investment in the sector.”
Other models discussed included production-backed lending tied to verified mineral output, credit cooperatives that allow miners to fund operations collectively, and tech-enabled microfinance leveraging blockchain and AI to assess creditworthiness and improve traceability.
The dialogue concluded with calls for stronger policy frameworks, particularly integrating ASM-specific provisions into the revised Mining Act, re-educating banks on ASM risks, partnering with NGOs for capacity building, and enhancing financial literacy and environmental standards across the sector.
Moderated by Caleb Ekpenyong, Corporate Communications Lead at Greychapel Legal, the session closed with a shared commitment to collaboration. As Abdul Abiola concluded, “This sector needs more than enforcement—it needs empowerment.”
