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A new Bill seeking to regulate the gold mining industry is in its final stages after being subjected to public participation on Monday.

The legislation drafted by Ikolomani MP Benard Shinali is especially seeking to protect artisanal miners and owners of parcels of land where the minerals are extracted.

Shinali said he had decided to come up with the Bill due to widespread exploitation of the miners and families by gold brokers and prospectors.

He said part of his efforts to end the exploitation include the ongoing construction of a gold refinery at Iguhu in his Constituency.

He said many families in particularly Ikolomani, Shinali and Lurambi constituencies where the gold mining was taking place on large-scale had lost their parcels after being duped by unscrupulous prospectors and brokers.

“My constituents are some of those who have been exploited by these brokers over the years. A family can, for instance, lease out its land to miners who will eventually fail to meet their part of the bargain claiming that they never found any gold,” said Shinali.

“Some of the mining companies and individuals also lack the requisite permits to carry out their activities,” he added.

Addressing participants during the event held at Musingu Friends Church in Ikolomani, the legislator stated that the Bill would further ensure that the artisanal miners were well protected and remunerated.

Shinali said the over Sh100 Million-gold refinery would give an opportunity to the locals to extract their minerals and personally deliver to the Plant for purification and weighing instead of having to sell it brokers at throw-away prices.

He said the legislation would also compel the mining companies to engage in a number of Community Social Responsibility (CSR) initiatives aimed at empowering the respective residents.

He urged locals to form groups and cooperative societies that they would use to easily access loans and grants meant to modernize their activities for their own safety and enhanced profitability.