…experts call for gemstone exchange, stronger local supply chains and sustained skills development
Nigeria’s solid minerals exports reached $350 million in 2025, according to the Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC), but industry stakeholders say limited local processing, weak supply chains and skills gaps are preventing the country from maximising the value of its gemstone resources.
The export figure represents part of Nigeria’s total export volume of $6.1 billion recorded in 2025, highlighting the contribution of solid minerals to non-oil trade and the potential to expand earnings through improved processing, branding and market access.
Speaking during a panel session on developing Nigeria’s gemstone value chain at Nigeria Mining Week in Abuja, industry stakeholders called for stronger collaboration between government and private operators to build a competitive domestic industry capable of meeting international market requirements.
Adeniran Adjibade, president of the Gemstones Miners and Marketers Association of Nigeria (GMMAN), said Nigeria needed to move beyond exporting unprocessed gemstones and develop the capacity to grade, cut, polish and transform the stones into finished jewellery.
Adjibade said international buyers were more likely to engage Nigerian suppliers when the industry could consistently present properly graded materials and products that meet market expectations.
He warned that mixing gemstones of different grades when selling to international buyers could weaken the bargaining position of local suppliers and expose them to exploitation.
“We had a situation years back, and everybody became a gem exporter. And you take materials that are just a mixed bag, so to say, of low-grade, medium-grade, and high-grade material.
“Immediately you present to the buyer out there, you are exposing your ignorance, and they take advantage of it,” he said
He said developing technical expertise in gemstone identification, grading and valuation would help miners and traders negotiate better prices and retain more value within the country.
Adjibade also urged the government to sustain interventions in gemstone faceting and jewellery-making rather than treat them as one-off initiatives.
He cited Tanzania as an example of how collaboration between government and private-sector players could help develop a country’s gemstone identity and international market appeal.
According to him, the Tanzanian experience shows the importance of supporting exploration, developing processing capacity and establishing organised markets where buyers can access gemstones more efficiently.
He said GMMAN was working towards developing an international gemstone buying centre in Nigeria to improve access to buyers and strengthen the country’s position in the global gemstone trade.
“We are trying to also develop Nigerian gemstone international gemstone buying centre,” he said, explaining that such a platform could help create a more organised marketplace for local producers and international customers.
Adjibade added that Nigeria should not focus exclusively on foreign buyers, noting that the domestic market offered significant opportunities for locally processed gemstones and jewellery.
He said developing local demand and encouraging Nigerians to appreciate locally sourced and manufactured products could reduce reliance on imported jewellery and create additional opportunities for businesses across the value chain.
Segun Okoh, another participant at the panel, emphasised the importance of establishing gemstone-processing clusters that connect small-scale miners, traders, processors and jewellery makers within a coordinated ecosystem.
Okoh said such clusters could ensure that economic benefits reach different participants, including women and young people in mining communities, while creating a more organised route from extraction to finished products.
He argued that keeping more stages of production within the same ecosystem would improve value retention and ensure participants receive returns for their contributions.
The cluster approach, he said, could also make the sector more attractive to investors by creating a clearer pathway for raw materials to move through processing and into the market.
Okoh stressed that investors needed reasonable assurance that their capital would generate returns, making it important to organise production and commercial activities around viable value chains.
Meanwhile, Tope Adebanjo, chief executive officer of Laurel School of Mines, said sustained training, mentorship and practical experience were essential to developing the technical workforce needed to expand Nigeria’s gemstone industry.
Adebanjo said his organisation had partnered with the Bank of Industry in a programme that trained more than 8,000 Nigerians across the country’s six geopolitical zones in gemstone-related skills.
He said the organisation had also awarded full scholarships to 10 Nigerians from different states, with the aim of building local capacity and encouraging more people to participate in the industry.
Adebanjo identified innovation, creativity, branding and sustainability as critical to developing a competitive gemstone sector, stressing that training should continue beyond graduation.
“We have to begin now,” he said, arguing that Nigeria could not afford to delay investments in the skills and expertise required to support the future growth of the industry.
He added that trainees needed opportunities to return to training centres for continued learning, while practical instruction and mentorship would help bridge the gap between classroom learning and the demands of industry.
The discussions highlighted the need for Nigeria to develop a more integrated gemstone value chain, combining exploration, responsible mining, grading, processing, jewellery production, branding and marketing.
Stakeholders said sustained government support, private-sector investment, specialised training and organised trading platforms would be necessary to increase the value captured locally from gemstones and improve the industry’s contribution to export earnings.
With solid minerals exports standing at $350 million in 2025, they argued that expanding domestic processing and strengthening local supply chains could help Nigeria earn more from its mineral resources while creating employment opportunities for miners, artisans, traders and jewellery manufacturers.
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