The Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dele Alake, has dismissed reports that Nigeria sold 700 billion dollars’ worth of solid minerals to the United States, saying the bilateral agreement is aimed at attracting investment and promoting cooperation in the mining sector. 

Alake maintained that no Nigerian asset was sold or transferred to the United States, describing claims that the agreement would give Washington control over Nigeria’s mineral resources and security architecture as false. 

The Minister made the clarification while inaugurating the Nigeria-United States Committee on Strategic Cooperation in the Solid Minerals Sector. He explained that the agreement was designed to connect American investors with local mining operators in Nigeria, stressing that the arrangement did not involve the transfer of ownership of the country’s mineral assets. 

Alake added that the agreement was signed publicly and published in several national newspapers. He said the partnership followed a strategic cooperation framework reached between Nigeria and the United States on the sidelines of the 81st United Nations General Assembly in New York. 

According to the Minister, the Memorandum of Understanding is a government-to-government arrangement intended to facilitate business partnerships between American investors and Nigerian mining operators.