The government has set its sights on Tana River County to be one of the major mining centers in the country in the near future after discovering large deposits of minerals in the region.
Government officials from the Ministry of Mining, Blue Economy, and Maritime Affairs have established that the county has large deposits of manganese, especially in the Mid-Galana region, where surveys and on-the-ground checks have shown evidence of manganese deposits near Lali Hill.
There are also expectations of iron, construction materials, and other natural resources in the region, and this has raised high hopes of transforming Tana River into one of the major mining centers in the country in the near future.
According to Hassan Joho, plans to open up the region for large-scale mining have commenced.
Joho, who was speaking during a minerals development conference in Mombasa, said that the mineral resources in Tana River have remained untapped for decades.
“We have identified Tana River as a county with enormous potential. If we unlock the mining potential in this county, we could change the lives of the people in this region,” said Joho.
Joho also called on the people of the Coast region to ignore their beliefs and myths surrounding mining activities, including the belief that it affects fertility and causes bad luck, saying this has been holding the country and other nations in the region from moving forward.
The CS also said that mining projects could attract significant investment, create employment, and develop the region’s infrastructure, including water and energy services.
The CS also reassured small-scale and artisanal miners that they will not be neglected when the large-scale mining projects begin. The CS said that the government will encourage the investors to set up value-addition plants to process the minerals locally instead of exporting them in raw form.
The Governor of Tana River County, Dhado Godhana, welcomed the mining plans, saying that mining could unlock the economy of the county and attract investors to the region.
The Governor said that leaders in the region should work together through the County Investment Corporation to bring in real investors to develop the mining sector in the region.
The Governor also instructed the mining officers to address the concerns of the people of Tana North Sub-County where residents have raised complaints over land degradation following gypsum mining.
Joho asked mining officers in the county to address the issue of land damage in Tana North Sub-County, where residents claim that land is being damaged due to gypsum mining, rather than waiting to be directed from the headquarters.
This plan, if approved, has the potential to see mining play a significant role in the economy of Tana River and provide new opportunities for its inhabitants, given that it is a rural county.
