The Federal Government of Nigeria and the United States of America have signed a framework agreement aimed at deepening American investment in Nigeria’s solid minerals sector and accelerating the development of the country’s vast mineral resources, estimated by the government at approximately $700 billion.
The agreement was signed on Wednesday at the Nigeria Mission House in New York by Nigeria’s Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dele Alake, and U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau, on the sidelines of the 81st United Nations General Assembly.
The framework provides a structured basis for cooperation across key areas of the mineral value chain, including geological data and exploration, mineral development and processing, infrastructure development, and technical capacity building. It is also expected to facilitate government-to-government collaboration and business-to-business partnerships that support sustainable investment.
Minister Alake described the pact as an important step in strengthening Nigeria–U.S. cooperation around the country’s mineral resources. “Nigeria cannot remain a source of raw materials while others capture most of the value,” he stated. “We want more local processing, quality jobs, stronger skills and greater opportunities for Nigerian businesses. In the coming months, we will turn this framework into projects, investments and real results for our people.”
The agreement aligns with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, which prioritises economic diversification, industrialisation, job creation and the attraction of strategic foreign investment. Nigeria has emphasised value addition, including domestic processing and refining of critical minerals, rather than the export of unprocessed materials.
U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau affirmed Nigeria’s status as a strategic partner, noting that the United States is prepared to support the country’s economic growth and deepen bilateral cooperation. He highlighted the strengthened partnership under the leadership of Presidents Donald Trump and Bola Tinubu over the past 18 months and expressed commitment to building on that momentum for shared prosperity.
The framework is expected to help attract U.S. capital and technical expertise into Nigeria’s largely underdeveloped mining sector, including critical minerals essential to global energy transition technologies, while supporting local industrialisation, skills transfer and job creation.