• Govt Declares Migori Gold Mining Area Public Forest.
• Gold has been extracted from the area for many years.
Residents of Migori County have criticised the government’s decision to seize 6,165 acres of the Macalder area and turn it into a public forest. This decision was made by the Ministry of Environment.
Gold has been extracted from the area for many years by local artisanal miners and small mining businesses, making it a significant source of income in the area.
The area was declared a forest area by the government in a special Gazette notice in accordance with the Forest Conservation and Management Act.
Residents of Migori County were not informed about the future of their underground mining in the Macalder region, which is a part of the Migori Gold Belt, throughout the gazettement process.
An area of land measuring approximately 2494.95 hectares (6165.02 acres), located approximately 25 kilometres northwest of Migori Township, Migori County, whose boundaries are more specifically indicated, edged green, on Boundary Plan No. 175/517 which is deposited at the Survey Records Office, Survey of Kenya, Nairobi, and a copy of which may be inspected at the office of the County Forest Conservator, Migori County, and Kenya.
As the Migori Gold Belt traverses the huge area, the Macalder Forest is home to one of the greatest gold reserves in the nation.
The Kenya/Tanzania border lies 16 kilometres from the Migori Gold Belt.
Govt Declares Migori Gold Mining Area Public Forest