Nigeria and Murdoch University, Western Australia, have reaffirmed their commitment to deepening knowledge transfer and professional capacity building in Nigeria’s solid minerals sector. The development followed strategic discussions between the university’s management and the Nigerian delegation to the Africa Down Under conference.

The delegation was led by solid minerals minister Dele Alake, represented by Obadiah Nkom, the director-general of the Mining Cadastre Office, according to a statement on Sunday by Mr Alake’s spokeswoman, Lara Owoeye-Wise.

Ms Owoeye-Wise said Nigeria’s delegation met with the university’s management, led by Dee O’Connor, dean of the School of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences, on the sidelines of the conference.

She said the discussions focused on the next phase of the Nigeria–Australia Resource Industry Collaboration and Capacity Building Programme.

The engagement, she said, centred on consolidating the gains of the programme’s first two cohorts and developing an expanded third phase with stronger industry exposure.

The Nigeria/Australia programme is a partnership between the Federal Ministry of Solid Minerals Development and Murdoch University.

Since its inauguration in June 2025, the programme has trained two cohorts of 11 Nigerian officials each. It combines technical, policy and leadership learning with field visits, industry engagement, job shadowing, workshops and exposure to Australia’s world-class resources governance and mining ecosystem.

Ms Owoeye-Wise said it also sought longer practical engagement and a sharper focus on preparing Nigerian mining professionals to identify, develop, and present commercially viable opportunities.

According to her, the partnership reflects the broader objective of the solid minerals ministry to build a knowledge-driven mining sector capable of attracting investment, promoting responsible resource development, strengthening local expertise and driving value addition.

“For Nigeria, the collaboration also provides a platform for sustained institutional cooperation with Australian universities, regulators, industry and research institutions, ensuring that international expertise is translated into lasting Nigerian capacity,” she said. “Meanwhile, the minister said that Knowledge transfer remained central to Nigeria’s mining reform agenda, stressing that sustainable transformation of the sector required building the human capacity to absorb and apply global best practices.”

Mr Alake said the vision was not simply to attract capital and technology into Nigeria, but to ensure Nigerians acquire the knowledge and expertise to deploy, manage, and ultimately advance those capabilities themselves.

“This partnership with Murdoch University is, therefore, a critical investment in the people who will drive the next generation of Nigeria’s mining industry,” he said.

(NAN)