Illegal mining persists despite reforms

…Drains billions, deepens insecurity

The discovery of a vast polymetallic mineral province in Kaduna State should have been another reminder of Nigeria’s enormous untapped mineral wealth.

Beneath the state’s soil lie deposits of platinum group metals, gold, nickel, copper, lithium and rare earth elements, resources capable of attracting billions of dollars in investment and reducing the country’s dependence on crude oil.

Yet, beyond the excitement over new discoveries lies a stubborn reality that has continued to undermine every reform effort: illegal mining.

Across large swathes of Nigeria, particularly in the North-West, criminal mining operations continue almost unchecked despite repeated government crackdowns, new security formations and multiple arrests. Rather than declining, the illicit trade has evolved into an entrenched underground economy that enriches criminal networks, fuels insecurity and deprives government of billions of dollars in revenue every year.

For many observers, the persistence of illegal mining raises uncomfortable questions about whether Nigeria’s biggest obstacle is the absence of laws or the lack of political will to enforce them against powerful interests.

The contradiction is glaring. While government officials continue to promote Nigeria as an attractive mining destination, illegal operators have effectively established parallel mining systems in several communities, extracting valuable minerals beyond the reach of regulators and tax authorities.

Security experts warn that the consequences extend far beyond economic losses.

In many parts of the North-West, illegal mining has become intertwined with the region’s worsening security crisis. Mining sites have increasingly served as financial lifelines for armed groups, who exploit mineral-rich communities, extort operators and use proceeds from illegal extraction to sustain violent activities.

Reports indicate that nearly 80 percent of mining activities across Nigeria’s North-West are conducted illegally, largely through artisanal operations outside government regulation.

The connection between illegal mining and insecurity is not new. As far back as November 2020, the Katsina State Government warned that illegal mining had become the economic engine driving armed banditry across Katsina and neighbouring states. Since then, repeated attacks, kidnappings and violent clashes around mining communities have only reinforced concerns that criminal groups have diversified beyond cattle rustling into the lucrative mineral trade.

The financial incentives are enormous. A 2025 report by the Africa Defense Forum (ADF) estimated that Nigeria loses about $9 billion annually to illegal mining. The report noted that foreign nationals often collaborate with local actors to extract and smuggle valuable minerals out of the country without paying royalties, taxes or export duties.

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The result is a thriving black market that robs government of critical revenue while strengthening criminal enterprises.

Kabir Adamu, a security analyst, captured the depth of the challenge when he explained that illegal mining sites often evolve into territories beyond state control.

“Once criminal control of a mining site is established, it becomes a mini-fiefdom,” Adamu said in a report published by Albarka 89.9 FM. “The proceeds don’t just fund AK-47s; they pay for informants, bribes and logistics networks that can outlast military operations.”

His remarks reflect growing concerns among security experts that Nigeria is confronting far more than economic sabotage. Illegal mining, they argue, has become part of a wider criminal ecosystem where proceeds from mineral theft sustain insurgency, banditry and organised crime.

Successive administrations have acknowledged the threat and introduced measures aimed at reclaiming the sector.

One of the most ambitious interventions came in 2024 with the establishment of the Mining Marshals, a specialised security outfit created to combat illegal mining across major mineral-producing states.

The unit initially deployed more than 2,200 officers to monitor mining activities in 10 states. By 2025, its strength had increased to about 2,670 personnel.

Government officials have pointed to tangible results. Hundreds of illegal miners, including foreign nationals, have been arrested, prosecuted and, in some cases, convicted.

Authorities insist the operations demonstrate that Nigeria is becoming increasingly hostile to illegal mining.

However, experts argue that arrests alone cannot dismantle a criminal economy sustained by influential sponsors, porous borders and weak institutional enforcement.

Many believe the real architects of illegal mining rarely appear at mining sites or face prosecution.

Instead, they allegedly operate through networks of financiers, middlemen, transporters and exporters who profit immensely while remaining largely invisible.

That perception has fuelled widespread calls for government to move beyond arresting artisanal miners and confront the politically connected individuals believed to be financing illegal operations.

Analysts argue that without targeting the economic and political structures sustaining illegal mining, enforcement efforts will continue to resemble treating the symptoms rather than curing the disease.

Unless illegal mining is brought under control, experts warn the country risks losing both investor confidence and the economic opportunities presented by the global shift toward critical minerals.

Beyond lost revenue, illegal mining also leaves devastating environmental and social consequences.

Unregulated excavation destroys farmlands, contaminates rivers with hazardous chemicals, accelerates deforestation and exposes mining communities to dangerous working conditions. Child labour and unsafe mining practices remain common features of many illegal mining camps, further complicating the humanitarian dimensions of the crisis.

For communities living around these sites, the costs are often measured not only in environmental degradation but also in violence, displacement and the collapse of lawful economic activities.

Until enforcement extends beyond low-level operators to include financiers, sponsors and influential collaborators, Nigeria may continue to celebrate new mineral discoveries while losing much of its existing wealth to criminal networks operating in plain sight.

As the race for critical minerals intensifies globally, the stakes have never been higher. The success of Nigeria’s mining reforms may ultimately depend not on the number of discoveries announced, but on whether the government can muster the political will to reclaim its mineral resources from those who have turned them into a thriving illicit economy.