The Nigerian Indigenous Women in Mining and Natural Resource Organisation (NIWIMNRO) has signed a memorandum of understanding with the Africans for Africa Initiative (AFA).

The agreement establishes a strategic partnership to ensure that mining investments are socially responsible, gender-responsive and contribute meaningfully to sustainable community development.

It was signed by NIWIMNRO’s executive director, Felicia Dairo, and Archibald Troko, director of marketing and partnerships at Core International, on the sidelines of the fifth African Natural Resources and Energy Investment Summit (AFNIS).

On Friday in Abuja, both parties affirmed that the partnership reflected a shared commitment to transforming the mining sector into a vehicle for inclusive economic growth.

They said the collaboration would particularly benefit indigenous women and mining host communities, who were often excluded from the benefits generated by the industry’s activities.

Ms Dairo said the agreement would promote inclusive mining, strengthen community development and expand economic opportunities for women in Nigeria’s mining sector.

She said the partnership was designed to ensure that mining investments were socially responsible, gender-responsive and delivered tangible benefits to host communities.

The collaboration, she said, aligned with the Africans for Africa Initiative’s 51 per cent African Benefit Mandate and the Mining for African Development and Equity (MADE) Framework for Sustainable Resource Development.

She said both initiatives aimed to increase local participation and shared prosperity from Africa’s natural resources.

According to her, the NIWIMNRO will serve as the initiative’s lead strategic adviser on community development and social impact initiatives linked to mining investments in Nigeria.

She said the organisation would support the development of a comprehensive community development agreement framework, including social impact metrics, baseline socio-economic assessments of mining communities and gender-responsive investment strategies.

Ms Dairo said a key aspect of the partnership would be the formalisation and strengthening of the artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM) sector.

“Both organisations will work together to organise indigenous women miners into structured cooperatives capable of participating in formal commercial arrangements and accessing new economic opportunities within the mining value chain.

“The collaboration will also facilitate the establishment of mineral aggregation hubs where commodities such as lithium, gold, and tin can be collected, graded and integrated into AFA-backed global supply chains.

“Through this process, women miners and local communities are expected to benefit from improved market access, technical support and increased economic participation,” she said.

Ms Dairo further said the NIWIMNRO had been designated as the initiative’s official implementation partner for community-focused projects in Nigeria.

She said the organisation would oversee health, education, and water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) initiatives funded through mining royalties, while serving as a liaison between investors and host communities.

According to her, the agreement marks an important milestone in advancing gender-inclusive development within Nigeria’s extractive sector.

“By intentionally integrating women into mining value chains and ensuring that host communities benefit from resource development, we can build a more inclusive, sustainable and prosperous sector that works for everyone,” she said.

Through the partnership, she said the AFA had committed to prioritising projects that incorporate the NIWIMNRO’s cooperative model and support investments in mineral value-addition infrastructure, including processing facilities.

She said the partnership reinforced NIWIMNRO’s mission to empower women miners through advocacy, capacity building, community development, and policy engagement.

According to her, a joint steering committee will be established to meet quarterly to monitor implementation, review progress and guide the execution of integrated projects.

She added that the MoU would remain in force for an initial period of three years, with provisions for renewal and expansion based on the collaboration’s success. 

(NAN)