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{
    "id": 531427,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/531427/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 399,
    "type": "other",
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    "content": "where we have some parastatals which are Government owned. The establishment of the National Mining Corporation has many issues which mandates the body on what to do. It gives a wider picture of how these resources can be managed. In Clause 22(2), it says that the corporation shall be a body corporate with perpetual success and a common seal. It is given all the five items and I hope Senators have gone through it. This Bill also went through public participation and I believe the public had an input. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, of concern is the Government participation. In most areas, the Government only gives licences but it does not follow up or become involved. This Bill has provided a 10 per cent free carrier in the share capital. That is confined to large-scale mining. If there is a specific carrier, for example, with the rare earth, which is worth billions of shillings, the Government will have a share without the cost of 10 percent. This is good to the revenue of this country. If one will have 10 per cent free carrier, it will go into assisting our Exchequer. This has been elaborated under Clause 48 and says where a mineral right is for a large scale mining, the state shall acquire 10 per cent free carrier interest in the share capital in respect of which financial contribution shall not be paid for by the state. There is also the local equity participation and this is very important. I had mentioned earlier that most of the companies doing exploration are multinationals. Once they are given a licence, they go to the London Stock Exchange, New York Stock Exchange or the Hong Kong Stock Exchange and float their shares. They list their shares there and get money without even spending their resources. Clause 49 of this Bill states that the Cabinet Secretary should prescribe the limits of capital expenditure on local equity participation. Of more importance is Clause 49(2) which says:- “A holder of a mining license whose planned capital expenditure exceeds the prescribed amount shall lease at least 20 per cent of its equity on a local stock exchange within four years after commencement of production.” That means that all the companies will be mandated to list, at least 20 per cent, in the Nairobi Securities Exchange (NSE) unlike in the past where they could get licenses, get into the flights to various countries and offload their shares in the London Stock Exchange. This will be beneficial to our country in terms of growing our economy. I say so because we have seen how management of mineral resources has been done in other countries like Australia and Canada. In their budgets, a lot of resources are got from the minerals. However, in Kenya, we have done nothing. There is nothing we get from resources apart from providing licenses to people to move around without knowing what they are doing. Countries like Zimbabwe, despite all the problems and sanctions, they have survived because of minerals. They export a lot of minerals which they use to fund their development budget and expenditure. So, as a country, if we manage resources very well, we will grow our (Gross Domestic Product) GDP by a double digit as soon as it is expected. Another issue which this Bill captures is employment and training of Kenyans. This is an expertise field. We have companies that will come with their expertise. The experts will do the exploration. Without proper training to Kenyans, jobs which will remain are the smalltime jobs which are manual. However, the Bill provides very clear The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate."
}