By: Festus Obot
The National Assembly has again expressed its unwavering commitment and readiness to expedite the passage of the Raw Materials Research and Development Council (RMRDC) Amendment Bill mandating a minimum 30% value addition to Nigeria’s raw materials before export. The President of the Senate, Distinguished Senator Godswill Obot Akpabio made this commitment at the opening of the 3-day Africa Raw Materials Summit in Abuja, on Tuesday, May 20, 2025.
According to the Senate President who was represented by the Chairman, Senate Committee on Science, Technology and Innovation, Senator Aminu Iya Abbas, “…we have affirmed the unwavering commitment of the National Assembly to enacting laws that promote minimum value addition, discourage unprocessed exports and incentivize local manufacturing and innovation”. The Senate President assured that the Bill which provides a path for moving Nigeria from resources dependency to resources sovereignty, would be passed this week for Mr. President’s assent.
He called on participants from other African countries to come up with bold and practical solutions that will truly shape the future of Africa’s resource landscape, not just as exporters of raw materials but as manufacturers of refined products.
Earlier in his welcome address, the Director General of the Raw Materials Research and Development Council (RMRDC), Prof. Nnanyelugo Martin Ike-Muonso reiterated that value addition to raw materials remained Africa’s pathway to sustainable prosperity, economic growth, industrial development and a competitive force in the global raw materials market. In Prof Ike-Muonso’s words, “…value addition is our liberation. It is the bridge between resource abundance and people-centered prosperity”, he said.
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The 3-day summit with theme, Shaping Africa’s Resource Landscape drew participants from across the African continents.
