Australia to fill Nigeria’s skills gap

Last week, Murdoch University (MU) welcomed Nigeria Solid Minerals Minister Dr Henry Dele Alake ahead of a two-week technical training program.

The program, a collaboration between MU and the Federal Government, marks the beginning of a strategic partnership between both countries and is designed to address Nigeria’s resource sector technical skills gap.

Delegates will engage directly with mining industry experts on trends in mining, investment opportunities and sustainability challenges as well as visit numerous projects across WA.

With a focus on capacity building and knowledge sharing across the global mining industry, participants will watch various presentations on extractive metallurgy, sustainable geochemistry and mineral science research taking place in the state.

An industry panel discussion at the end of the program will give participants the opportunity to explore solutions to Nigeria’s key mining challenges using examples and proven successful strategies from the WA resource sector.

The program focuses on ensuring political and economic conditions for resource industry development are in place to enable sustainable and fair outcome for stakeholders.

Nigeria’s resource market is currently dominated by oil and gas production. The country is shifting its focus and emerging as a minerals producer, including lithium and gold, to build a more diverse and resilient economy.

As a global leader and innovator in resource exploration, operations and governance, Australia is well positioned to help grow Nigeria’s underdeveloped resource sector to the benefit of both countries and global supply chains.

MU vice chancellor Andrew Deeks says the program underscores the importance of capacity building in the mining sector.

“The visit supports international collaboration in the resource industry and aligns with Murdoch’s commitment to foster ethical, sustainable and inclusive engagement activities with communities to build trust and demonstrate citizenship and impact through education and research,” he said.

“The support of the Federal Government speaks to the importance of our two nations coming together to share knowledge for the mutual benefit of our societies.”