Evaluation of Artisanal and Small-Scale Mining Operators’ Access to Finance in Nasarawa State
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- September 1, 2023
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Onekpe, Sunday Amedu1*, Nwachukwu, Chinedu Chidinma2 & Iyi, Edmund Amuezuoke3
1Department of Quantity Surveying, Enugu State University of Science and Technology (ESUT), Enugu State
2Department of Project Management Technology, School of Logistics and Innovation Technology, Federal University of Technology, Owerri
3Department of Urban and Regional Planning, Enugu State University of Science and Technology (ESUT), Enugu
*Corresponding Author
ABSTRACT
The artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM) sector is a vital component of resource-based economies, contributing significantly to both employment and mineral production. This study assesses financial accessibility for ASM operators in Nasarawa State, identifying challenges and proposing solutions. Data was collected through surveys and interviews involving 402 participants, including 380 artisanal miners and 22 deposit money bank (DMB) executives, averaging four participants per Local Government Area (LGA). Obstacles hindering ASM operators from accessing financial support include their informal nature, associated risks, and reluctance from commercial banks to extend credit. Key barriers encompass insufficient collateral, limited business planning and record-keeping capacity, and a lack of corporate governance structures for effective loan assessment and documentation. Many ASM operators also lack skills to produce necessary documents like feasibility studies, further inhibiting their access to funding. Despite ASM’s significance in sustaining livelihoods, its contribution to Nasarawa State’s economy remains suboptimal due to limited financial access. Addressing these constraints requires collaborative efforts from stakeholders in Nasarawa’s mining value chain. This entails formulating and implementing policies to formalize artisanal mining, providing training in financial management, bookkeeping, and loan terms. Establishing a risk-sharing mechanism with incentives can mitigate ASM-related risks, promoting cooperation and responsible conduct among the state government, financial institutions, and artisanal miners. This approach enhances resilience in the face of uncertainties and unlocks the potential of the ASM sector in Nasarawa State.
FULL PDF | Citation: Onekpe, S. A., Nwachukwu, C. C. & Iyi, E. A. (2023). Evaluation of Artisanal and Small-Scale Mining Operators’ Access to Finance in Nasarawa State. European Journal of Engineering and Environmental Sciences, 7(3), 21-31. DOI: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.8308271
Copyright©2023 The Authors. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited