Ruto directs CS Joho to open Magadi mining industry to new investors

The President wants Kenya to stop exporting raw soda ash and instead use the resource to manufacture glass and chemicals locally.

He tasked Mining Cabinet Secretary Hassan Joho with implementing the directive, setting the stage for a new chapter in the long-running Magadi mining dispute.

Following a government push to open up the industry to more investors, Ruto now wants the vast 240,000-acre mining area in Magadi, Kajiado County, opened up to additional companies.

The plan is to bring in four to five firms that will manufacture glass and chemicals locally using soda ash extracted from Lake Magadi.

“I have given clear instructions to the CS of Mining on what will go on in Magadi. Now that the cases have been determined in court, we must expand opportunities in Magadi,” Ruto stated. 

“There is no way we are going to allow one company to monopolise a big resource that can support industries in Kenya,” he added.

The President’s latest position points to a shift from an earlier push for Tata Chemicals to close its operations and leave the country to a proposal that would allow other investors into the area and expand local processing.

Ruto said the government would no longer allow the export of raw soda ash without local value addition, arguing that the resource should support manufacturing and create more industrial opportunities in Kenya.

“My instructions are that we should never export our soda ash in raw form. It must be added value here in Kenya, in Kajiado County. That facility will accommodate four to five companies,” the President said.

He also directed Joho to ensure the plan is implemented, with the government seeking to establish local glass manufacturing using raw materials extracted from Magadi.

“Joho, you have my clear and firm instructions that that must happen. We must manufacture glass in Kenya using the raw materials in Magadi,” Ruto said.

However, the dispute over Magadi’s mining operations remains unresolved, with Kajiado Governor Joseph Ole Lenku insisting that Tata Chemicals must address outstanding regulatory obligations and community grievances before normal operations can resume.

The governor has accused the company of failing to return community land, pay outstanding land rates to the county government and restore water supply from Nguruman to the community, among other concerns.

Tata Chemicals reportedly owes the Kajiado County Government Ksh.17 billion in land rates and royalties, while the Magadi community is said to be owed Ksh.1 billion.

The competing demands place the government in a balancing act as it seeks to attract new investors and expand local manufacturing while ensuring that existing legal, regulatory and community obligations are addressed.

In a statement made on September 7, 2026, Joho said the government would reopen the process to attract investors and assess their proposals.

“We will re-advertise, and they must show us what they will do for this country,” Joho said.

The outcome of the review is expected to shape the future of mining in Magadi as the government seeks to break monopoly over the resource.