Alake Urges OAU to Establish World-Class Centre of Mining Excellence

The Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dele Alake, has urged Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU) to leverage its mineral and intellectual resources to establish a world-class centre of mining excellence.

Alake made the call while receiving a high-powered delegation from the University’s Governing Council, led by Professor Ralph Akinfeleye.

According to a statement issued on Sunday by the Minister’s Special Assistant on Media, Lara Owoeye-Wise, Alake said the proposed centre should help bridge the gap between academic theory and the extraction and processing of mineral resources.

The Minister noted that the commercial value of the minerals available to the University was sufficient to reduce the proportion of government subvention in its total budgetary allocation.

He encouraged the University to explore partnerships with private-sector investors to unlock the commercial potential of its mineral assets.

Alake further noted that OAU’s technical expertise and intellectual capacity gave the institution an advantage in attracting investors to develop its mineral resources.

Other members of the delegation included Ambassador Edward Sarki, Joseph Abaagu, Professor Olatunbosun Adedayo and Barrister Yinka Ayanfola.