Governor El-Rufai says Kaduna State has more gold than the Republic of South Africa

KADUNA State governor Nasir El-Rufai has revealed that the state has more gold reserves that South Africa and has the capacity to dramatically diversify the Nigerian economy and reduce its dependency on crude oil.

 

Like most state in Nigeria, Kaduna State is dependent on monthly federal allocations for its survival, as it does not generate enough revenue internally to fund itself. Over 90% of Nigeria's export earnings come from crude oil but Governor El-Rufai said that the raw gold deposits in one local government of the state is larger than the entire mineral deposits in the Republic of South Africa.

 

Governor El-Rufai added:  “We have just confirmed that Kaduna State, indeed Birnin Gwari Local Government Area alone, has more gold than South Africa. This is proven, this is verifiable and we have all the data and are collaborating with the Federal Ministry of Solid Minerals.”

 

 According to the governor, solid minerals alone would attract about N40bn (£141.63m) investment to the state and urged investors to explore the opportunities in the state. He said the new vision of his administration is to make Kaduna a state programmed for abundant investments, economic opportunities and prosperity.

 

In addition, the governor said that his government had put all mechanisms in place to ensure peace and security, good governance, improved quality of lives, and social inclusion for the people and investors coming to do business. He said discussions were ongoing with a large international mining company to come and explore gold reserves in Kaduna State.

 

“We are focusing on mining and agriculture in creating jobs in this state. The mining company we are discussing with is going to take our local miners, train them and group them into cooperatives so that they would be like sub contractors to them and be able to work with them," Governor El-Rufai added.

 

He said his government was also taking advantage of its abundant agricultural resources to woe investors, adding that Kaduna has the best ginger in the world and that N5bn would be spent on production. Governor El-Rufai also expressed the determination of his government to tackle the daunting development challenges that are facing the state.