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{
    "id": 1446559,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1446559/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 178,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Sen. Cheruiyot",
    "speaker_title": "The Senate Majority Leader",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 13165,
        "legal_name": "Aaron Kipkirui Cheruiyot",
        "slug": "aaron-cheruiyot"
    },
    "content": "of all, address how to secure benefits for the local community that hosts whatever is being mined or whatever is being extracted in the extractive industry. It is a good thought because that is also part of the problem. I know for a fact, speaking to many people who have come to the country that if you go now to the Ministry of Mining, chances are that you will run into an investor or somebody that looks well-to-do and with a group of villagers in toe. If you go to the boardroom of the Ministry of Mining, there are many such people there, every single day. You will ask them what is it that you people are here to do. They will say these are the community owners of where I have mining rights to and I have been granted consent by the community. These are the representatives. Therefore, there is no gainsaying for a fact that, indeed, you need to sort the issue of community interest. How do you tie them? Madam Temporary Speaker, you must also marry that with the fact that if you are not very careful on how you grant these rights to the community, it is easy not to inspire the confidence of investors. We know between us and the four walls of this Parliament that we do not have either technical or financial capacity to grow the extractives industry to the level that we aspire to get it as a country. I urge the committee handling this Bill to either marry the two or handle it the same way you have brought the Bill here, encouraging us to look on the interest of the local community. Can they immediately merge into this particular Bill or separately in another Bill? Ensure that you also counterbalance the commitment that you are giving to the local community with incentives for the people with the money and the knowledge run this industry. If you do not provide the guarantees for them, if we do not become sensitive and attractive for business, we will just have a good law that will just gather dust in our shelves. Nobody will come here if they are told that even if you get a license in Nairobi, you cannot go to Migori and mine the gold that Sen. Eddie is talking about. Of what use is that to an investor? Of what use is it to the people of Narok at Kilimapesa if we do not provide that particular incentive to the investors? The people can stay with their gold the same way it has stayed for the thousands of years it has been there. I contend and hold the view that while this is a good and a positive step to begin with - I will speak to the benefits whatever little additions I have to the Bill - I think this is only 20 per cent needed for that industry to thrive. I will give an unrelated example. Business processing of services, the young people that we are encouraging to work. You know the President has been speaking about digital hubs across the country where we are training our young people by use of computers to work for companies that are set out of the country. It is an industry that has been trying to thrive and setting foot in Kenya. This is an industry that is dominated by Philippines and India. However, Kenya has such a good competitive advantage for the simple fact that Kenya has young and literate population who speak very good English compared to the Filipinos and Indians. Therefore, many of those companies are working hard to set up in Kenya. 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."
}