Lagos, Nigeria, Africa

ConMin West Africa unearths Nigeria’s Mining Sector

“ConMin West Africa” and the Nigerian ‘National Mining Summit’ both took off in Abuja on 13th June 2017, organized by Afrocet Montgomery (a subsidiary of Montgomery Exhibitions, UK [[http://www.montex.co.uk]]www.montex.co.uk] ) and IMAG (Germany) in partnership with Deloitte Consulting (the consulting arm of global auditing firm Deloitte Touche), the Nigerian Federal Ministry of Mines and Solid Mineral Development and the World Trade Center Lagos. The event was opened by the then Acting President of Nigeria, His Excellency the Vice President Yemi Osinbajo and the Minister for Mines and Steel Development, Dr Kayode Fayemi.

The National Mining Summit

The National Mining Summit took place between 13-15th June and acted as a forum to showcase the unrivalled potential of the solid minerals sector in Nigeria. The event allowed the Government and other stakeholders to unveil the abundant opportunities offered by mining and set out its action plan to combat challenges. It was acknowledged by many, including Nigeria’s Acting President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, and the CEO of the Stock Exchange, Mr Oscar Onyema that, in recent years, the mining sector has been earmarked as a critical component in diversifying Nigeria’s economy and propelling long term and sustainable growth.

The event left participants incredibly excited about what mining portends for Nigerian business and the economy in general. It was concluded that the Summit would become an annual event and one that would become a prominent feature in Africa’s mining calendar.

The “ConMin West Africa” Exhibition

The Exhibition ran alongside the National Mining Summit (so also between 13th -15th June). A range of international and national companies, both large and small, exhibited at the trade show to present their technical solutions and products. Germany and China were represented with national pavilions with a total of 10 countries represented by organizations. These included Bosch, Case, Hitachi, John Deere, Komatsu and Thyssenkrupp Industrial Solutions. Additionally, the likes of the African Finance Corporation, Federation of Construction Industry (FOCI) and the Nigerian Stock Exchange were also represented. Overall, more than 1,500 visitors attended the event.

In their press release Afrocet Montgomery stated that “the success of the events was only possible with the support, expertise and assistance of its partners, sponsors and endorsers”, listing World Trade Center Lagos, the Dangote Group (owned by Africa’s richest man), the Africa Finance Corporation, Stanbic (the South African continental bank), Total (the French multi-national petroleum firm), LaFarge (the global cement conglomerate), Minutor, the Nigerian Stock Exchange, and FOCI.

Afrocet Montgomery, also announced their upcoming “PROPAK West Africa” show [visit www.propakwestafrica.com ] in Lagos, holding between 19th – 21st September 2017, also with World Trade Center Lagos as one their strategic partners. PROPAK West Africa is the leading packaging, printing and associated manufacturing and machinery event in the West Africa region and will be running for its sixth edition.

Picture: [1] The Acting President of Nigeria, His Excellency the Vice President Yemi Osinbajo at the ribbon-cutting opening of the event, From Left to Right in the picture : Mr Damion Angus ( Group CEO of Montgomery Exhibitions, UK), in red cap John Adeyemi-Adeleke ( WTC Lagos), The Hon. Bawa Bwari Abubakar ( The Minister of State for Mines & Steel Development ), in black cap His Excellency the Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, in grey kaftan Dr Kayode Fayemi ( The Federal Minister of Mines & Steel Development).