16 Importance Of Mineral Resources to Nigeria is listed and explained here. We hope you find it informative and educative.
16 Importance Of Mineral Resources
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Nigeria is a country that is vested with a lot of mineral resources which include; limestone, salt, gold, lignite, iron-ore, H.E.P., coal, lead, zinc, etc.
These mineral resources help greatly to boost the economy of the country because naturally, in any country of the world where there are abundant minerals, the economy of such country is usually developed and promoted.
Importance Of Minerals Resources
Importance Of Minerals To The Nigerian Economy is as follows:
1. Employment
The process of exploration and mining of these minerals usually generates job opportunities for people which in turn creates job employment.
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2. Revenue generation
One of the ways that the government of Nigeria generates revenues for the Nigerian economy is through the Taxes paid by mining companies including the export and import duties on minerals that are obtained from the country’s rich deposits.
3. Foreign exchange earning
It is through the export of minerals like petroleum. coal and tin that there is provision for foreign exchange for the country’s economy.
4. Provision of essential goods
Some of the everyday goods that we use daily are obtained from some of these minerals, for example, kerosene and gas are obtained from crude oil without which our cars won’t drive and our stoves won’t burn.
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5. Raw materials for industries
Industries cannot thrive without raw materials and some raw materials that are used by most industries are obtained from natural minerals, for example, raw materials like limestone are used by cement industries; iron ore is used by iron and steel industries.
6. Improvement of the standard of living
Money earned from minerals is used to make available basic social amenities which helps to drastically improve the standard of living of the people living in the country.
7. Acquisition of skills
The presence of these minerals and their extraction helps a lot of people to acquire different skills which will help them to be more productive.
8. Infrastructural development
When the mineral is present in an area, it helps to breed the development of industries around that area, and these industries, in turn, lead to the construction of good roads, electricity, water, drainage systems, and other infrastructures that will benefit the area.
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9. Growth of Cities
Cities like Enugu, Akwa-Ibom, Jos, and Warri have grown because of the vast presence of coal, tin, and petroleum in the states.
10. Production of geological maps
The process of exploration of minerals in the country has led to the production of some geological maps.
11. Transfer of Technology
The presence of mining of minerals in the country has led to the massive transfer of technology from industrialized nations to Nigeria.
12. Training and retraining of Personnel
The activities of Mining in Nigeria have led to the training and re-training of personnel for them to be more efficient in the mining operations.
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13. Growth of Ancillary Industries
The presence of minerals or mining activities in Nigeria has generally led to the establishment of a lot of ancillary industries which can promote the activity of mining in the country.
14. Income to miners
Those who have taken up mining as a profession have used the medium to generate a steady flow of income for themselves and their families.
15. Provision of Essential goods
Most of the essential goods that we use today are usually obtained from the process of mining and some of them are; gold, rubber plastic, and tires.
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16. Improvement of the balance of payments
The exportation of minerals to foreign countries has helped to improve the balance of payments between the two countries involved in international trade.
