Dele Alake, Minister of Solid Minerals Development, has presented refined gold bars to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, saying the first transaction of the commodity added $5 million to Nigeria’s foreign reserves.
In a statement on Sunday by Segun Tomori, the minister’s special assistant on media, Alake said the refined gold will be sold to the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to bolster foreign reserves.
According to the statement, the gold bars presented to Tinubu were sourced from artisanal and small gold miners and refined by the Solid Minerals Development Fund (SMDF) to meet the London Bullion Market Association’s good delivery standard over the weekend.
He told the President that the event marked the first commercial transaction under the National Gold Purchase Program (NGPP), a centralised offtake scheme supported by a decentralised aggregation and production network of artisanal and small-scale miners and cooperatives.
Alake said the transaction delivered a $5 million increase in Nigeria’s foreign reserves assets, 70 plus kilograms of gold refined to the London Bullion Market good delivery standard, and a successful aggregation of locally mined gold, thereby injecting about N6 billion into the rural economy.
“The successful completion of the first commercial transaction clearly demonstrates the National Gold Purchase Program’s effectiveness,” the Minister said.
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“It has increased the nation’s foreign reserves assets and shown that using the Nigerian Naira to purchase a liquid asset traded in United States Dollars, such as gold, is a viable strategy.
“This transaction has also underscored the potential of the National Gold Purchase Program to enhance fiscal and monetary stability.”
Alake commended Tinubu for supporting reforms in the solid minerals sector, assuring that the NGPP will increase the country’s reserve and boost the naira’s value.
Also via X, Alake posted: “I am pleased to report that the National Gold Purchase programme, which aims to increase our country’s reserves and boost the value of the naira, is making significant progress.
“Recently, I had the honor of presenting the latest gold bars to HE President Bola Ahmed Tinubu. The bars were sourced from artisanal and small gold miners and refined by an agency of our Ministry, the Solid Minerals Development Fund. They have met the London Bullion Market Association Good Delivery Standard and will soon be sold to the Central Bank of Nigeria to strengthen our foreign reserves.
“This marks the first commercial transaction under the National Gold Purchase Program (NGPP), which is a centralised offtake scheme supported by a decentralised aggregation and production network of artisanal and small-scale miners and cooperatives.
“Furthermore, I am proud to announce that this first commercial transaction has resulted in a substantial increase of over US$5 million in Nigeria’s foreign reserves assets, the refinement of over 70 kilograms of gold to the London Bullion Market Good Delivery Standard, and the successful aggregation of locally mined gold, injecting around NGN6 billion into the rural economy.”
Receiving the gold bars, Tinubu lauded the ministry for achieving a major milestone in the administration’s drive to diversify the economy.
“This is another concrete step towards the diversification process under the Renewed Hope Agenda” the President said.
