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{
    "id": 1446541,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1446541/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 160,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Sen. Oketch Gicheru",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": null,
    "content": "Local content is a key area around policy. It is a policy that will anchor the various elements of local content development in our counties and within the borders of our country. The local content policy leaders must then emanate within the structures of counties so that when you think about this kind of committee, they can think about research and development institutions that can anchor the design and implementation of different policies that can enable the community to benefit from the proceeds of this minerals. On issues of sustainability of the knowledge in the mining, oil and gas industry, as some Senators have spoken about here, the capacity element of companies that then come and do extraction in our local communities, their capacity is informed by different capital and different resources that they have. In Migori County where I come from, I have seen several Chinese people coming to extract gold. They come with the knowledge, equipment, and the entire infrastructure. However, that knowledge is not sustainable and transferable. It is limited because they come as private players without a proper local content policy in terms of a vision framework that allows them to share that knowledge. If one goes to Masara, Macalder and Osiri Matanda, the local people there are still doing artisanal mining. They lack even simple knowledge of knowing where the gold is. They lack knowledge about the geospatial mapping of where to exactly get the gold. They still have to use rudimentary forms of mining to the extent that even endangers life. You have seen this in several places in this country, even in Ikolomani, where Sen. (Dr.) Khalwale comes from, Rongo, and Migori, a number of our people very well- meaning going to mine without the knowledge. They then end up dying in the mines. It is not just the issue of capital in terms of investing, but also knowledge. When foreigners come to our places, they have some basic ways of knowing through some geospatial mapping that they will exactly this point. They say I will exactly extract this kind of gold, which local people do not know. When they leave, that knowledge is not transferable. This also, indeed, comes with the idea of business participation and business registration. This Bill should have also included the element of business registration for these local businesses. In most cases, you find that in mining communities such as in Kakamega and Migori in general, I have seen people mining without having a business organization. It is mining for survival. It has become so subsistent to the extent that everybody who is extracting finds this very difficult to have a local business that can encourage them to organize to unionize and even to bargain for the prices of the commodity that they are having. Mr. Speaker, Sir, I see that some Senators are concerned that I am talking here, but Sen. Cherarkey is getting all the credit on our screens. I hope that Kenyans now know how to distinguish between my voice and the voice of Sen. Cherarkey. They should also recognize the knowledge gap because I come from a serious extracting sector so the content will generally just come. The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Director, Hansard and AudioServices, Senate."
}