The war against cross-border and trans-national smuggling of minerals among countries in the Great Lakes Region is set to go a notch higher after the International Conference for Great Lakes Region (ICGLR) hinted at adopting a unified regional certification system by member states to eradicate illicit and untracked movement of minerals from one country to another within the bloc.
The ICGLR Executive Secretary Ambassador Joao Samuel Kaholo said the inter-governmental organisation was advocating for approval and adoption of a regional mineral and natural resource certification system by the 12-member states as a critical part of a broader initiative to safeguard the integrity and sanctity of a mineral resource for each of the member states.
The system, the ambassador explained, would thwart the illegal trade and smuggling of minerals within the region by denying smugglers and illegal mineral traders, a market or mineral processing services without validating the origin of the mineral resource.
“The regional certification for natural resources will be a critical move towards safeguarding minerals from the member states. Once it comes into effect, we expect to halt the cross-border smuggling of minerals because each member state will not only be protecting her mineral resource but also that of her neighbours,” explained Ambassador Kaholo.
The Ambassador was speaking in Nairobi during a consultative engagement with the Principal Secretary (PS) for Mining Elijah Mwangi over the progress of ICGLR in promotion of the mining ecosystem within the Great Lakes Region in support of implementation of strategies that drive economic development and spur regional integration.
The ICGLR is a 12-member state inter-governmental organisation that promotes security initiatives, peace, sustainable development, and economic prosperity for the countries in the region. Amongst the members are Angola, Kenya, Burundi, the Central African Republic (CAR), the Republic of Congo, Democratic Republic of Congo, Uganda, Rwanda, and South Sudan. Others are Tanzania, Sudan, and Zambia.
PS Mining Elijah Mwangi noted that Kenya has made significant strides towards enhancing the country’s mineral value chain and supporting the fight against the smuggling of minerals across the Kenyan boundaries.
He stated that one of the government’s most potent weapons against this vice is the development of a mineral processing and value addition policy aimed at accelerating Kenya’s progress towards achievement of mineral value-addition goals.
The PS further termed the policy as timely in bolstering the country’s determination to domesticate and localise the processing of all locally produced minerals to create a sustainable mineral-specific ecosystem that protected the miner’s welfare starting from the mine to the market. This, he added, would also enhance the mineral beneficiation value-chain for players in the sector.
“Embracing this progressive policy translates to processing of our minerals locally. This will both halt the sneaking of minerals away to other countries and safeguard the country’s resources as we work towards shielding our miners from wanton exploitation,” explained Mwangi.
Already, Kenya is eyeing multiple value-addition centres for processing local minerals. In the gold-value chain, the government is establishing a Sh 5.8 gold processing plant in Kakamega County for the aggregation and processing of gold, especially from artisanal miners. In Elgeyo Marakwet County at Kerio Valley, a Sh 4.8 billion investment will see the revival of this plant, while a Sh 2.5 billion granite-processing plant is coming up in Vihiga County.
While noting the commendable progress in fighting trans-border smuggling of minerals, the PS hailed the move by the ICGLR to elevate the mineral-smuggling discourse into a regional agenda. He said that tackling such vices collectively would significantly weaken the networks used to steal the minerals.
The meeting also touted Kenya as the first nation to host the inaugural Great Lakes Mining and Investment Conference. The conference is aimed at providing a global platform for the member-states to showcase their mining and mineral potential while advocating for strengthened measures in safeguarding the natural resources.
Ambassador Kaholo said Kenya had adequate capacity to host this prestigious event and offered the ICGLR’s support towards making it a world-class event.
“We look forward to supporting Kenya to become the host of the first Mining and Investment Conference by the International Conference for the Great Lake Region,” he said.
By Wagema Mwangi
