The Mining Act, 2016 (the Act) came into force on the 27th of May, 2016 thereby repealing inter alia, the previous Mining Act (Cap.306) which was enacted in 1940, the Trade in Unwrought Mineral Act (Cap.310) and the Diamond Industry Protection Act (Cap.311). The Act is a progressive piece of legislation which is meant to give effect to the provisions of Articles 60, 62(1) (f), 66(2), 69 and 71 of the Constitution of Kenya, 2010. The Articles generally include provisions on principles of land policy, public land, regulation of land use & property, obligations in respect of the environment and finally, agreements relating to natural resources. The coming into force of the Act certainly marks a new dawn in Kenya’s mining industry for local as well as foreign direct investors in the sector. A more detailed analysis of the Act will follow in the weeks to come.
To get a background of the Mining Bill which preceded the Act, click here to read our recent analysis – Delving deeper: a closer look at local content in Kenya’s growing mining sector and The “big” deal about the Mining Bill: Key highlights.
For additional insights on land rights issues in Kenya’s extractive industry, read a previous article in our latest newsletter (pages 4-5) by one of our natural resource lawyers, here
