President Bola Tinubu says coal mining is becoming one of Nigeria’s fastest-growing sectors.

According to him, coal mining recovered dramatically from a 22 per cent decline in the first quarter to 57.5 per cent growth in the second quarter, becoming one of the fastest-growing sectors. Tinubu said this in his national broadcast to mark Nigeria`s 65th independence anniversary yesterday.

He said the solid mineral sector was now pivotal in Nigeria`s economy, encouraging value-added production of minerals extracted from its soil.

The President said his administration inherited a near-collapsed economy caused by decades of fiscal policy distortions and misalignments, which had impaired real growth, but remained determined to change the situation.

He said:“As a new administration, we faced a simple choice: continue business as usual and watch our nation drift, or embark on a courageous, fundamental reform path.“We chose the path of reform.

“We chose the path of tomorrow over the comfort of today. Less than three years later, the seeds of those difficult but necessary decisions are bearing fruit.” Tinubu said under his leadership, Nigeria`s economy was fast-growing and its reforms were already yielding tangible results.