The Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) and the Nigeria Mining Cadastre Office (MCO) have formed a strategic partnership aimed at strengthening regulatory compliance and transparency in the mining industry.
This was the outcome of a courtesy visit by the Registrar-General/CEO of CAC, Hussaini Ishaq Magaji, to the Director-General/CEO of MCO, Engineer Obadiah Simon Nkom, on Wednesday in Abuja.
Engineer Nkom welcomed the collaboration, noting that it would enhance inter-agency synergy and improve enforcement of relevant laws governing the mining sector. He disclosed that the MCO had fully automated its operations since 2022 and now maintains a digital database of over 7,000 companies.
He assured the CAC of the MCO’s readiness to share its data to foster transparency and support national efforts to comply with international standards. Nkom added that the MCO routinely shares beneficial ownership information with key regulatory and security agencies such as the EFCC, NFIU, DSS, and the Nigeria Police, to aid in the fight against financial crimes and ensure due diligence in mining operations.
In his remarks, CAC Registrar-General Hussaini Magaji, emphasized the critical role of compliance in sanitizing the mining sector. He called for a review of the minimum share capital requirements for mining companies and urged the MCO to work only with entities that are fully compliant with CAC regulations, including the timely filing of annual returns.
He stressed that collaboration between both agencies would promote good corporate governance and help curb illegal and inactive entities within the industry.
