Government suspends all mining operations in Migori County
By KNA, August 11, 2023The government has suspended all mining operations in Migori County and issued notices to both machine operators and artisanal miners to acquire legal licenses.
In a joint crackdown conducted by Migori County Commissioner David Gitonga(pictured) and Regional Mining Director Joseph Boiwo at Nyatike and Kuria Sub Counties, all miners with expired licenses and the ones without were ordered to secure new ones and immediately shut down leaching processes.
The County Commissioner said that despite the requirement by the law to have all mining activities regulated according to the Constitution, the majority of miners were still operating illegally.
Gitonga stated that it was only through regulation that the government could generate revenue and secure the miners from exploitation by cartels.
“There are some miners and artisans that are operating illegally despite being informed to acquire necessary legal mining licenses. We therefore saw it fit to conduct a raid on illegal mining to ensure compliance,” noted Gitonga.