Cabinet Secretary for Interior Kipchumba Murkomen has revealed steps the government is taking to ensure the safety of the mining sector.

Murkomen says, given the significant role the sector is playing in the growth of the country’s economy, safety must be ensured to ensure illegal activities are prevented.

“The mining industry is a significant contributor to our country’s economy. But owing to ineffective enforcement of regulations governing the sector, the growth of the industry has been hampered by the proliferation of illegal mining.

“Besides loss of revenue and low investor confidence, illegal mining also contributes to environmental degradation, resource conflicts, health hazards, child labour and risks to human safety,” Murkomen said via a post on X on April 16, 2025.

Roadmap

The CS held a meeting with top security chiefs to come up with a roadmap so that the security in the sector is assured.

“Following the directives of the National Security Council and recommendations from our recently concluded Jukwaa la Usalama forums in the Coastal Region, this morning I convened a meeting of the State Department for Mining and top security chiefs to discuss a roadmap to enhance the security of the mining sector in the country.

“We agreed to restructure the coordination of the specialized police unit attached to the State Department for Mining, enhance the capacity of the officers, sensitize the communities where mining operations are carried out, and co-opt mining officers into the security structure at the grassroots on a need basis,” the former Sports CS said.

He was joined in the meeting by Mining, Blue Economy, and Maritime Affairs CS Hassan Joho; State Department for Mining PS Harry Kimtai; Inspector General of Police Douglas Kanja; DIG (KPS) Eliud Lagat; DIG (APS) Gilbert Masengeli; DCI Mohamed Amin; and other ministry officials.