By Adaora Adibe
Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, has announced his intention to inaugurate the maiden edition of the Africa Raw Materials Summit, scheduled to take place from May 20th to 22nd, 2025, in Abuja. The announcement came during a courtesy visit by the Director-General of the Raw Materials Research and Development Council (RMRDC), Professor Nnanyelugo Martins Ike-Muonso, and members of the Council’s management team.
During the meeting held in his office at the National Assembly, Senator Akpabio praised the Council for its proactive efforts in driving industrial development through raw materials research and policy innovation. He expressed strong support for initiatives that promote local value addition and reduce dependency on raw exports.
Akpabio lauded the Council for the 30% value addition bill on raw materials sponsored by the Deputy Chief Whip, Senator Onyekachi Nwaeboyi.
He noted,” I must commend the Nigerian Senate through the Deputy Chief Whip for the initiative.”
The senate president expressed optimism that through the Council, Nigeria is renewing its hope in terms of research, local production, input and value chain, etc. He emphasized the need for the Council to further undertake training, sensitization and advocacy for Nigerians on the need for raw materials value addition, expressing the importance of the bill to the overall development of the economy and to teach children in secondary schools about raw materials, solid minerals for recognition wherever they are found.
Earlier, the Director General, RMRDC, Professor Ike-Muonso, thanked the Senate President for his continued support and commended the 10th National Assembly for championing transformative legislative reforms. He particularly highlighted the significance of the pending bill to amend the RMRDC Act, sponsored by Senator Nwaebonyi, which aims to mandate at least 30% value addition to raw materials before export.
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The DG described it as “Nigeria’s—and indeed Africa’s—number one industrialization bill,” noting its potential to drastically reshape the continent’s economic future.
He further applauded the Senate’s swift action in moving the bill through critical legislative stages and called for continued momentum to see it enacted into law.
During the visit, Ike-Muonso presented two key requests to the Senate. First, he appealed for legislative intervention to facilitate the full implementation of a 2% import surcharge due to the Council since 2022, noting that the Council currently receives less than 0.5% of the allocated amount. He urged the Senate to “graciously attend to this pressing issue.”
Second, he formally invited Senator Akpabio to grace and officially open the First Africa Raw Materials Summit, emphasizing the importance of his presence in lending political weight and visibility to the summit.
The summit is expected to bring together leaders, policymakers, industry stakeholders, and researchers from across Africa to strategize on boosting local content, industrial growth, and raw material value chains across the continent.
Accompanying the DG were key members of the RMRDC management team, including the Director, Admin and Human Resources, Mr. L. G Suraj; Director Legal and Board Affairs, Barr. Ngozi Kechi, Director, Planning, Statistics and Policy Department, Mrs Rachel Kotso, Director, Investment Promotions and Consultancy Services Department (IPCSD), Mr. Yaro Mohammed, among others.
The Africa Raw Materials Summit is being positioned as a landmark event that will drive dialogue and policy alignment across African nations toward sustainable industrialization.
