Segilola Resources Operating Limited (SROL), Nigeria’s first large-scale commercial gold mining company, has expanded its corporate social responsibility (CSR) programme in Osun State by handing over nine commercial minibuses and providing business support to artisans across its host communities.

The initiative, implemented under the company’s 2026 Youth Empowerment Programme, is aimed at promoting sustainable livelihoods and enterprise development in communities hosting its mining operations.

Under the second phase of the Youth Empowerment Transport Scheme, SROL distributed three commercial minibuses each to beneficiaries from Iperindo, Odo-Ijesha and Imogbara to enable them establish commercial transport businesses and generate stable incomes.

The programme also extended support to beneficiaries of earlier editions. In Imogbara, Kayode Temitope, an aluminium fabricator who received equipment under the 2025 youth empowerment programme, was provided with a generator to improve productivity.

Similarly, Akinrotimi Seun Michael, a cobbler from Iperindo who completed beginner and advanced vocational training under the 2023 programme, received additional tools and production materials, including a filing machine, to expand his business.

SROL said the interventions form part of its broader community development strategy aimed at strengthening local enterprise, creating jobs and improving household incomes in its host communities.

Speaking during the handover ceremony, Sikiru Haruna, mines manager at SROL, said the company remained committed to investing in initiatives that deliver long-term economic benefits to communities.

“At Segilola Resources Operating Limited, we believe lasting community development begins with investing in people.

“Through our Youth Empowerment Programme, we are equipping members of our host communities with the tools, resources and opportunities they need to build sustainable businesses, improve their livelihoods and contribute meaningfully to the economic development of their communities,” he said.

One of the beneficiaries, James Adejugbagbe, described the commercial vehicle as a life-changing opportunity that would provide a reliable source of income for his family.

The Youth Empowerment Programme is implemented under SROL’s Community Development Agreement (CDA), through which the company partners with host communities to deliver projects focused on economic inclusion, skills development and sustainable livelihoods.

The latest intervention comes as mining companies operating in Nigeria increasingly channel CSR investments towards enterprise development and youth employment as part of efforts to deepen community engagement and strengthen their social licence to operate.

Wasiu Alli is a business, economics cum data journalist with strong expertise covering macro trends, capital markets, government policies, corporate earnings and comparative economics analysis. Alli turns raw data into trends that not only tells compelling stories but nudges investors to make valued and informed decisions. He’s an alumnus of Lagos State University and trained at Lagos Business School. He formerly heads the Companies and Markets desk at BusinessDay where he writes and supervises the production of well researched articles on earnings updates, corporate sectoral comparisons, market intelligence as well as interviews with C-suite executives.