Environment Committee Holds Consultative Forum With State Departments Under it's Purview

The Departmental Committee on Environment, Forestry and Mining led by Vice Chairperson Hon. Charles Kamuren ( Baringo South) Wednesday started received submissions from the Cabinet Secretary (CS) for the State Department of Mining, Blue Economy and Maritime Affairs, Hon. Salim Mvurya and the Permanent Secretary (PS) in the State Department for Mining Mr. Elijah Mwangi on the ministry’s programmes and budget utilization.

CS Salim Mvurya in his presentation, outlined some of the key reforms they have put in place to help mainstream the mining sector and to ward off illegal and unregulated mining activities. He told the lawmakers that the ministry had undertaken restructuring of the State Department for Mining and created new directorates and clear reporting lines for new staff once the Public Service Commission finalises on the recruitment process.

“Hon. Chair, a lot is happening to ensure we protect the mining sector. Today we have the Mining Police Unit to assist the Ministry in enforcing compliance. As you maybe aware, illegal mining was declared an economic crime. Between 2019 and last year, the State Department was not granting licenses and this led to an upsurge in illegal mining. We have however made some interventions to stop this. We have also done a lot of mapping to curb illegal mining with over three thousand illegal mining sites now closed”, CS Mvurya informed the lawmakers.

He went ahead to inform the Committee that for the first time in the Country, communities around areas where mining is taking place would start earning royalties across 32 Counties. Under the program, Kilifi and Kwale Counties are set to receive the lion share from the Ksh 2.9b royalty kitty.

Kwale County has been allocated Kshs. 1.4 billion, while Kilifi and Kajiado Counties are set to receive Kshs. 950 million and Kshs. 660 million respectively. This high amounts are attributed to limestone mining for cement manufacturing.

Speaking on the mining law, CS Mvurya emphasized on the need to ringfence 10 per cent of the proceeds to the community, with 20 per cent going to the County governments and the remaining 70% being proceeds for the National Government.

Committee Session Chair and Vice Chairperson Hon. Charles Kamuren and Hon. Joseph Emathe (Turkana Central) insisted that the Ministry comes up with stringent measures to stop briefcase licenses in the mining sector which play against the economy of the Country.

Hon. Emathe requested that the CS ensures the mining sector is attractive to investors for Kenya to brag of it’s minerals and even increase the earnings from royalties.

Committee Members Hon. Gertrude Mbeyu (Kilifi) and Hon. Fatuma Masito (Kwale) observed that there is need for the Ministry to involve leaders at all levels in streamlining the mining sector. This was strongly supported by Hon. Beatrice Kemei (Kericho).

“You talk about big money going to some Counties including those whose people we represent. There is need to create a system that allows all the leaders to track the utilization of the money. Therefore, it is our opinion that all stakeholders get engaged to ensure full benefits to our people”, Hon. Mbeyu.

Session Chair Hon. Kamuren insisted on the need for Kenya to increase geological data Investment, noting that this would give clear data on how many minerals Kenya has and where they are located.

CS Mvurya assured the Committee of the Government’s commitment to support mining especially the artisan miners by organising them into into cooperatives, equipping them and providing them with permits at the local level. He revealed that presently , a total of 240 cooperatives had been registered across the country.

The Committee later engaged with the PS in the State Department for Mining, Mr. Elijah Mwangi who made a presentation on his Department’s Procurement plan for the financial years 2023/24 and budget estimates.

Together with the Chairman of the National Mining Corporation (NAMICO) Hon. Joseph Lagat (Former MP), the PS presented several challenges facing the State Department including shortage of staff.

He told the Committee that efforts to see the Salaries and Renunciation Commission (SRC) give them a green light on the same had not been successful. The Committee undertook to follow up on the matter.

The Committee is set to Meet with the PS State Department for Environment and Climate Change today.