This study examined the process of formulation and various components of solid minerals policy in the Southwestern geo-political zone of Nigeria. It also assessed the extent of its implementation in terms of government’s intended objectives.. The survey method was adopted for the study to elicit information from respondents, who were the major stakeholders in the solid minerals industry. The instruments used included questionnaire, interviews, focus group discussions and observations. A total sample of 300 respondents was selected for the administration of the questionnaire from among the mining communities, miners, ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs) and universities using purposive stratified sampling technique. Information was elicited from respondents on the process of solid minerals policy formulation and its components. Information was also elicited on the extent of implementation through the perception of respondents on performance indices such as, contribution to GDP, employment generation, poverty alleviation, attraction of foreign investments among others since it was difficult to obtain direct quantitative figures on these performance indicators that can be linked to solid minerals. Both descriptive and inferential statistical methods were used to carry out the analysis. The results showed that necessary steps were not followed in formulating the policy (grand mean rating of 2.95 out of 5). The study also found out that the extent of implementation was low (grand mean ratings generally below 3.00 at p ˂ 0.05). The study concluded that the development of the solid minerals sector in Southwestern Nigeria was contingent on conducive social, political and economic terrain; high level of implementation planning and resource mobilization; efficient operations and services; adequate infrastructural facilities and non-cumbersome land acquisition procedure.
Keywords: : Employment generation, Policy Formulation, Policy Implementation, Poverty Alleviation and Foreign Investments.
