By Yunus, Olawale
*Founder and Chief Executive Officer of ESG Consultancy, Francine Carron.
Mining companies in Nigeria must strengthen environmental, social and governance (ESG) practices to attract responsible investment, gain access to international markets and ensure the long-term sustainability of host communities, the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of ESG Consultancy, Francine Carron, has said.
Carron gave the advice in an interview with The Miners Magazine/The Miners Online www.theminers.com.ng during Nigeria Mining Week 2026 in Abuja, where she highlighted the need for stricter enforcement of mining regulations, responsible environmental management and improved support for artisanal and small-scale miners.
She described ESG compliance as an increasingly important requirement for businesses seeking to compete in international markets, warning that mining companies that fail to demonstrate credible sustainability performance could lose access to investors and global buyers.
“Without ESG, they will not have a seat at the table,” Carron said, stressing that sustainability was no longer a passing business trend but a strategic requirement for companies operating in resource-intensive industries.
According to her, international buyers are moving beyond traditional considerations such as price, delivery and product quality to demand verifiable information about the environmental and social impact of the businesses they engage with. She said Nigerian mining companies must be prepared to provide reliable data demonstrating their sustainability performance, adding that ESG compliance could serve as a competitive advantage and a gateway to international trade.
“ESG is a competitive advantage. It is your global trade language. It is your access to an international market,” she said.
* Nigeria must move from Mining Regulations to Effective Enforcement*
While acknowledging that Nigeria already has policies and regulations governing the mining industry, Carron identified enforcement as a major area requiring improvement. She called for more effective coordination among government departments and regulatory agencies, arguing that fragmented operations could undermine efforts to establish a responsible and sustainable mining ecosystem.
According to her, relevant institutions must work collaboratively rather than operate in silos, ensuring that environmental protection, community relations, licensing and governance standards are implemented coherently.
She also emphasised the need to make information about regulations and opportunities accessible to artisanal and small-scale miners, particularly those operating in remote communities.
Carron said regulatory communication must be adapted to the educational and practical realities of mining communities, noting that technical language could prevent people from understanding their obligations.
Using her experience with ESG training in China as an example, she explained that sustainability education must begin with basic concepts and be delivered in ways that local populations can understand. For Nigeria, she said, effective regulation should combine enforcement with awareness, education and practical support to encourage compliance across the mining value chain.
*Illegal Mining, Community Rights Require Urgent Attention*
Carron identified environmental degradation, weak community engagement, regulatory non-compliance and illegal mining among the challenges confronting the sector, particularly in developing economies. She said mining companies must recognise that their operations take place on lands occupied and used by communities, making meaningful engagement and properly managed community agreements essential to responsible extraction.
According to her, companies must honour their commitments to host communities and ensure that mining activities do not undermine local livelihoods or expose residents to avoidable environmental harm. She explained that environmental responsibility, social protection and effective governance are interconnected elements of ESG that must be managed together.
Carron also called for measures to bring informal miners into the formal economy through legal pathways and organised cooperatives. She said artisanal and small-scale miners should be supported to operate within the regulatory framework and organised in ways that improve their access to information and international markets.
Nigeria’s mineral resources, she argued, present significant economic opportunities, but unlocking their full value requires the country to address environmental, social and governance challenges systematically.
*Responsible Mining Must Extend Beyond Mine Closure*
The ESG specialist urged mining companies to adopt a lifecycle approach to environmental management, insisting that responsible operations should not be assessed solely by what happens while a mine is producing minerals. She said the welfare of host communities after mining operations cease should be a major measure of a company’s sustainability performance.
According to Carron, communities must be able to continue thriving after a mine has closed, rather than being left with damaged land, depleted livelihoods and unresolved environmental problems. She identified access to clean water, responsible soil management, worker safety and the protection of human rights as critical considerations for mining operators.
Carron also raised concerns about child labour in mining, urging stakeholders to confront the problem openly and take practical steps to protect children and improve conditions for workers and mining communities.
She maintained that environmental protection and social responsibility should be integrated into operational planning from the beginning of a mining project through its eventual closure.
Her position places greater emphasis on the long-term consequences of mining activities, including the ability of host communities to maintain their livelihoods and access essential resources after extraction ends.
*ESG Compliance can Improve Access to Investment*
Carron further explained that ESG should not be treated merely as an additional expense or an administrative requirement but as an investment in business resilience and competitiveness.
She said ESG Consultancy helps organisations assess their risks, identify sustainability gaps and develop practical measures to improve their performance.
Rather than limiting the process to the preparation of sustainability reports, she described ESG as a comprehensive framework for examining how a business operates, the risks it faces, the progress it has made and the improvements required to meet its objectives.
According to her, the process involves evaluating existing practices, identifying weaknesses and working with clients to close those gaps.
The ultimate objective, she explained, is to enable businesses to present credible evidence of their sustainability performance to buyers and investors.
She highlighted traceability and reliable data as important tools for demonstrating responsible business practices, noting that companies should be able to substantiate their claims with measurable information rather than rely solely on promotional narratives.
Carron said investors generally seek businesses that can generate returns while presenting manageable levels of risk. Consequently, she argued, stronger ESG performance can help companies demonstrate better risk management and become more attractive to potential investors.
For Nigeria’s mining industry, this approach could strengthen the credibility of operators seeking investment and commercial relationships beyond the domestic market.
*ESG Consultancy Expands into Nigeria*
Explaining her professional journey, Carron said her interest in sustainability began more than two decades ago after graduating with a bachelor’s degree in international affairs and politics.
She started her career with the United Nations in Liberia, where she worked on the Millennium Development Goals, an international development framework that preceded the Sustainable Development Goals.
She subsequently worked with corporate organisations and governments and pursued further studies, including advanced master’s programmes in global management and political communication. She also disclosed that she was pursuing a PhD in sustainable aviation.
Her professional experience eventually led her to specialise in sustainability within aviation, an industry she described as difficult to decarbonise.
She founded ESG Consultancy to address the sustainability needs of industries facing significant emissions and operational challenges. The company’s initial clients were primarily in aviation before mining companies began seeking similar expertise.
Carron said the consultancy now focuses on hard-to-abate sectors, including aviation, mining, material handling, logistics and maritime operations. She disclosed that the company has offices in Antwerp, Belgium, and Haikou, China, where she lives, and is opening an office in Port Harcourt, Nigeria, her home country.
The planned Nigerian presence could provide a platform for the consultancy to engage more directly with businesses and stakeholders seeking to strengthen sustainability practices in the country’s extractive industries.
*A strategic Imperative for Nigeria’s Mining Future*
Carron’s message at Nigeria Mining Week 2026 was that the country’s mineral wealth must be matched by credible environmental safeguards, responsible community relations, effective governance and measurable sustainability performance.
While Nigeria’s mineral resources offer opportunities for economic diversification and investment, she argued that the sector’s ability to translate these resources into lasting value will depend partly on how responsibly mining operations are conducted.
For operators seeking international buyers and investors, the implication is increasingly clear: compliance must go beyond possessing licences or producing sustainability statements. Companies must demonstrate responsible practices through verifiable data, effective risk management and sustained engagement with affected communities.
As Nigeria continues to pursue greater investment in solid minerals, Carron’s recommendations highlight the importance of embedding ESG principles into mining operations, strengthening regulatory enforcement and ensuring that the benefits of extraction extend beyond the lifespan of individual mines.
Her central message to the industry was unequivocal: sustainability is not separate from commercial success; it is becoming one of the conditions for achieving it.
