Miners and mineral prospectors, who have been waiting for four years to know the fate of the permit applications, have been given more time to update records on company registration, ownership, sources of funding, and tax compliance.
The extension follows the expiry of the previous deadline of 14 days through October 24.
Those with pending applications for new and renewal of mining rights, which is done via an online platform, now have up to November 30 to comply.
“Following consultations with mining sector stakeholders, the ministry has extended the [period for submission of updated records … for all applicants with pending applications for new and renewal of mining rights in the Mining Cadastre System for all categories of Mining Rights [Prospecting and Mining Licences and Permits],” Principal Secretary for Mining Elijah Mwangi said in a notice Tuesday.
The Ruto regime on October 3 unfroze a blanket December 2019 moratorium on the issuance of prospecting licences to allow a fresh countrywide mapping of mineral resources.
The partial lifting of the ban, following a Cabinet nod opened the door for investors to resume prospecting on all construction and industrial minerals.
Prospecting and exploration of strategic minerals such as uranium and cobalt will, however, be approved on a case-by-case basis guided by Mining (Strategic Minerals) Regulations, 2017.
Applicants are required to provide updated bank statements or audited financial reports for the last three years as proof of cash to undertake mining or prospecting activities.
They are also required to disclose shareholders of the company, tax compliance certificates from the Kenya Revenue Authority, and programme of work.
Kenya has been unable to attract new investments due to the moratorium, with some firms redirecting their investments to neighbouring countries. “It is difficult to say how much we have lost because we do not know who would have come through if we had the licensing going on. However, the general trend in mining is that when you do not have exploration, then you don’t expect new projects to come in which is a loss to the economy,” Mr Patrick Kanyoro, chairman of the Kenya Chamber of Mines, told Nation.Africa in an interview earlier in the year.
For years, the sector’s contribution to gross domestic product — a measure of national economic output — has stagnated, hovering between 0.7 per cent and 2.1 per cent in five years through 2022.
Though mining has been present in the country for over 50 years, productivity has remained low, with large-scale operations limited to soda ash, mineral sands, and from 2013 Titanium ores in Kwale.
