Reported by: Ijeoma G | Edited by: Oravbiere Osayomore Promise.
The Nasarawa State Government has banned children below the age of 18 from participating in mining activities across all 13 local government areas of the state, establishing a special monitoring and enforcement team to tackle illegal mining and child labour in mining communities. The announcement was made by the Commissioner for Environment, Solid Minerals and Mining, Margaret Elayo, at a press conference in Lafia on Friday, September 18, 2026. The decision followed the reported deaths of 37 suspected illegal miners in Minna, Niger State, who died while in the custody of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps after being arrested during operations on September 15 and 16.
Elayo said the state government would no longer fold its arms and allow young residents and other individuals to engage in illegal mining activities that expose lives to danger and contribute to environmental degradation. She explained that the special monitoring team had been empowered to visit mining communities and sites across the state and arrest persons or entities engaged in mining activities without the required licences and clearance from the government. The decision, she said, was part of renewed efforts to sanitise the mining sector, protect child rights and prevent the exploitation of minors at mining sites.
The commissioner expressed particular concern that underage children were being used as labourers in artisanal mining sites in some parts of the state. She disclosed that the ministry had received information that some mining sites in Wamba, Nasarawa-Eggon and Kokona Local Government Areas were exposing children to health hazards and denying them 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 declared. "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 advised mining companies to engage adults aged 18 years and above, train them and provide them with the necessary safety equipment to work on their sites. She also advised parents to discourage the use of their children in mining sites and to avoid being involved themselves because of the dangers and health implications associated with the activity. The state government, she said, would work with security agencies, traditional rulers and other community leaders to enforce the ban and ensure compliance. It was also working with the Federal Ministry of Solid Minerals Development and relevant agencies to formalise artisanal miners into cooperatives for better regulation and safety.
Elayo made it clear that the ban was not intended to stop mining activities but to ensure that mining was done responsibly and sustainably. Nasarawa State is endowed with large deposits of solid minerals, including lithium, tin and gold, which have attracted large numbers of artisanal miners to the state. The commissioner said Governor Abdullahi Sule had reiterated that the blessing of abundant mineral resources should not be exploited by investors and middlemen to the detriment of the environment and the people of the state. "I have noticed that our people are still not listening, including the investors," she said. "I am going to take a very drastic decision. At the end of the day, it's either you are here to support Nasarawa State's growth or we will make sure that we treat you according to the nonsense that you are bringing to our state."
The commissioner also launched a comprehensive manhunt for illegal miners and mining companies that recruit minors and underage workers at their sites without regard for industrial safety and welfare. She said the manhunt became necessary after receiving videos from the permanent secretary of the ministry, where underage persons were seen undertaking mining activities around Wamba Local Government Area. "Yesterday the permanent secretary reached out to me at about 9:30 p.m. and sent a couple of videos as it related to my state," she said. "I felt it is necessary for me to speak on it so that we can be guarded and use some of these challenges that other people are experiencing for us to be guarded so that the same mistakes will not be repeated in Nasarawa State." She expressed her condolences to the Niger State Government over the death of the 37 youths and warned that illegal mining was unacceptable regardless of who was involved.
According to Elayo, most mining companies do not have the licence to begin mining activities but only to prospect. She said she had caused the shutdown of illegal mining sites and sent underage workers home. "I have gone to some mining sites that I shut down because of the kind of people I see there," she said. "You have a lot of youth who don't have jobs that you can train above 18 that you can engage to do some of this work after proper training and making sure that you provide them with the necessary gadgets to even go into the site. But because of our gains and our selfish interest, we just go into any community, we get licensed and then we start mining and degrading, making the environment uncomfortable for the citizens in the community." She called on citizens and stakeholders to report cases of illegal mining activities in their areas, warning that not reporting such activities would make them accomplices.
The ban in Nasarawa follows a similar move by a village head in Nasarawa Eggon Local Government Area. On September 7, 2026, the village head of Gbado Ummeh, Isah Akpu, imposed a N50,000 fine on parents whose children were found at mining sites during school hours. Akpu said the measure was intended to discourage parents from allowing their children to engage in mining at the expense of their education.
The death of the 37 miners in Niger State has sent shockwaves across the region. The NSCDC Commandant in Niger State, Suberu Aniviye, said the suspects were arrested during operations conducted on September 15 and 16 and died while in custody. The circumstances surrounding their deaths remain under investigation, but the incident has intensified calls for stricter regulation of artisanal mining and better protection for minors who are increasingly drawn into the dangerous trade.
For the people of Nasarawa State, the ban represents a critical test of the government's ability to enforce its laws and protect its most vulnerable citizens. The state's mineral wealth has attracted thousands of artisanal miners, many of them children, who work in hazardous conditions for meagre returns. The government's decision to ban under-18s from mining sites and prosecute violators is a step in the right direction. But enforcement will be the real challenge. With mining sites scattered across remote communities and artisanal mining deeply embedded in local economies, the task ahead is enormous. The special monitoring team will need resources, political backing and community cooperation to succeed. The children of Nasarawa State deserve nothing less than the chance to trade the shovel for the school desk, and the lithium beneath their feet for the education that will secure their future.
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