Rise in royalties boosts state's mining revenue
Posted on : Tuesday , 27th January 2015
Kenya's mining revenues stood at Sh600 million in the first half of the 2014/2015 financial year, boosted by royalties from increased mineral exploration, Cabinet secretary Najib Balala said yesterday.
"We are hopeful that the Sh1.2 billion target for the current year will be achieved by end of this financial year," Balala said.
According to the Economic Survey 2104, the total value of mineral output declined by 28.6 per cent from Sh27.6 billion in 2012 to Sh19.7 billion in 2013. This was as a result of reduced production of gold, triggered by price uncertainty in the export markets.
Balala said lack of proper systems, low mining activity and poor enforcement of the law had previously affected revenue collection. Australian firm Base Titanium is among companies that have revived the industry with its first shipment of rare earth metals in February last year.
He warned mineral exporters to seek the necessary licences from the ministry before shipping out any products noting that there have been cases where investors have tried to export minerals without approval to avoid paying royalties and tax.
"You cannot come to this sector and want to export without a permit...we want to ensure that everybody pays equally at a level playing field."
In 2013, Balala embarked on a clean-up of departments to weed out corrupt officers suspected of issuing licences without following due process.
A task force he appointed to investigate the licensing issue reported massive corruption involving key ministry officials in licence and permit issuance, which denied the government various revenue avenues.
"We want to ensure that from now on everybody gets benefits of the resource revenue that we are generating," he said yesterday.
He was speaking during the launch of ISO 9001:2008 quality management systems implementation by the ministry.
The CS said once certified under this ISO, the ministry will operate more efficiently.
Balala called on the Senate to fastrack approval of the Mining Bill 2013 which will give streamline the industry.
Source : www.the-star.co.ke
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