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KEPSA is the private sector apex and umbrella body set up in 2003, to bring together business community in a single voice to engage and influence public policy for an enabling business environment. over 500,000 direct and indirect members..
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KEPSA ENGAGEMENT WITH DIRECTORS IN THE STATE DEPARTMENT OF MINING
- Published On: 2024-03-12
On 12th March 2024, the KEPSA Mining, Blue Economy, and Maritime Affairs Sector Board met with Directors in the State Department of Mining led by the Director of Geological Survey and Geo-information Management, Enoch Kipseba. The engagement aimed to address issues within the Mining Sector and to establish potential areas of partnership that would upscale the sector towards attaining global competitiveness.
The Director of Geological Survey, Mr. Enoch Kipseba, in his remarks appreciated KEPSA for initiating the conversation between private sector players and government which is long overdue. Highlighting the activities within the State Department, he emphasized on the ‘ground truthing’ activity to pinpoint the specific minerals present following the exploration initiative that identified 970 potential mineral-rich areas nationwide and the development of the mining investor guide all in a bid to promote investments. He further shared his optimism in the partnership forging forward and welcomed frequent engagements with KEPSA that would upscale growth within the sector.
The meeting highlighted the following;
- The need for encouragement of Artisanal Small-Scale Miners to join cooperatives to facilitate their formalization and enable them to operate within the provisions of the cooperative permits further will soon receive a cluster license from NEMA significantly reducing the cost of operations.
- The State Department has submitted a draft Mining Investment Guide to attract and inform potential investors on the opportunities and regulatory framework within the mining sector and urged for private sector collaboration in enriching the guiding document to facilitate investments.
- The need for the Mineral Development Levy in the Mining (License & Permit) (Amendment) Regulations, 2023 to be anchored within the Mining Act 2016 and further a framework of implementation to be developed for accountability.
- The current licensing backlog of about 1000 applications attributed to the imposed moratorium, the cumbersome bureaucratic processes as stated in the law, and the presence of speculators within the system who haven’t met the statutory application requirements. It was further noted that most of the unsatisfactory applications occur due to the knowledge gap among Mining sector players and awareness creation that will sensitize on the licensing requirements is necessary.
- The current plan of the State Department is to upgrade the laboratory facilities in Nairobi and further decentralize the facilities in various counties.
The meeting concluded with an agreement of continuous partnership with the State Department in the development of the Mining Investment Guide and in implementing measures that would upscale the Mining Sector. Further, it was agreed that subsequent meetings will be held bi-monthly to update on progress and to address upcoming issues within the sector.