The Nasarawa State Government has banned children below the age of 18 from mining sites across the state and established a special monitoring team to tackle illegal mining and child labour.
The Commissioner for Environment, Solid Minerals and Mining, Margaret Elayo, announced the directive on Friday during a press conference in Lafia.
Elayo said the ban would apply across the state’s 13 local government areas, following concerns over the use of children as labourers in artisanal mining communities and the dangers posed by mining activities.
She said reports received by the ministry showed that children were being exposed to health hazards at some mining sites in Wamba, Nassarawa-Eggon and Kokona local government areas, while their involvement was also affecting their access to education.
“Henceforth, no child below the age of 18 is allowed to be found at any mining site in Nasarawa State, either as a labourer, errand runner or food vendor,” Elayo said.
“Any company, site operator or parent found violating this directive will be arrested and prosecuted in line with the Child Rights Law and the mining regulations.”
The commissioner said the government would no longer tolerate mining activities that put lives at risk or contribute to environmental degradation.
She disclosed that a special monitoring and enforcement team had been constituted to visit mining communities and sites across the state.
The team, according to Elayo, would also arrest individuals and companies operating without valid mining licences or the required government clearance.
The directive comes shortly after 37 suspected illegal miners died while in the custody of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps in Niger State.
The detainees had been arrested during operations at mining locations in M.I. Wushishi and Lukoto on September 15 and 16. The circumstances surrounding their deaths have prompted a wider investigation and renewed attention on safety and enforcement in Nigeria’s mining sector.
Elayo said the Nasarawa government was particularly concerned about the presence of children at mining locations, regardless of the nature of the work they performed.
She directed mining companies to employ only adults aged 18 and above, train their workers and provide them with appropriate safety equipment.
Parents were also warned against taking their children to mining sites because of the health risks associated with the environment.
The commissioner said the state would work with security agencies, traditional rulers and community leaders to enforce the ban and ensure compliance.
She also disclosed that Nasarawa was working with the Federal Ministry of Solid Minerals Development and other relevant agencies to organise artisanal miners into cooperatives.
The move, she said, would help bring informal mining operations under better regulation and improve safety standards.
Nasarawa is one of Nigeria’s mineral-producing states, with deposits that have attracted significant artisanal and small-scale mining activities.
Elayo stressed that the government’s action was not aimed at shutting down mining operations but at ensuring that the sector operates responsibly, safely and sustainably.
With the new enforcement team expected to begin monitoring mining communities, operators, parents and local communities will now face greater scrutiny over the presence of children and compliance with mining regulations.
