- Ruto orders Tata Chemicals Magadi to leave Kenya.
- More than 600 jobs face uncertainty over the exit.
- Government cites unpaid obligations and limited local investment.
More than 600 jobs have been placed in uncertainty after President William Ruto ordered Tata Chemicals Magadi to leave Kenya, abruptly putting the future of workers at one of the country’s longest-running mining operations under scrutiny.
Speaking in Kajiado on Thursday, September 3, Ruto accused Tata Chemicals Magadi of exploiting resources around Lake Magadi for more than a century without making sufficient investments in the county or creating enough opportunities for local residents.
“We have Lake Magadi, we have a big company, we have resources that can change Kajiado County and Kenya as a whole. Tata Chemicals Company, which is here in Kajiado, has been running its contract for over 100 years,” Ruto said.
He went further, saying he had already instructed the company to leave the country.
“They have not constructed anything in Kajiado, including even employing people here. I recently told them to vacate and get out of this country. Let them go. They have been taking our resources to India,” the President said.
Tata Chemicals Magadi has previously reported having more than 600 people on its payroll. The figure makes the company’s proposed exit a potentially significant employment issue in an area where formal jobs are limited and mining-related economic activity supports a wider network of households and businesses.
The government has not yet explained whether employees will be absorbed by the proposed investor, whether new recruitment will be undertaken or what transition arrangements will be put in place.
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The President said the government had identified a new investor but would impose conditions designed to ensure that Kajiado captures a much larger share of the economic value generated from its resources.
The incoming company, he said, would have to establish processing facilities in the county rather than extracting minerals and exporting them with limited local value addition.
“We have said we are bringing in a new company, and the new ruling for the new company is that they must establish a glass processing company here and also another company for processing chemicals here in Kajiado,” Ruto said.
On July 29, Mining Cabinet Secretary Hassan Joho ordered Tata Chemicals Magadi to suspend mining operations until it complied with Kenya’s mining laws.
Joho said the government had engaged the company for years over its statutory obligations but several issues remained unresolved.
Among the concerns were the absence of a clear mineral beneficiation strategy, outstanding royalty reconciliation and payment obligations, inadequate export reporting and weaknesses in implementing community development agreements.
The government also cited insufficient plans for employing and transferring skills to Kenyans, weak procurement of local goods and services and shortcomings in environmental compliance.
Tata Chemicals Magadi is one of Africa’s major producers of soda ash and salt and is owned by Tata Chemicals Limited, part of India’s Tata Group.
By Hillary Muhalya
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