The County Government of Taita Taveta will collaborate with higher learning institutions to enhance mineral production through capacity building of miners and exchange in knowledge as the department seeks to explore large scale mining opportunities in the County.
Speaking during the Centre for Mining, Environmental Engineering and Resource Management (CEMEREM) consultative meeting at Taita Taveta University, the Deputy Governor Majala Mlagui said the partnership will enhance technical capacity thereby improving production in the mining sector.
"As we seek to open avenues for large scale mining in the County, the input from academia is critical in not only improving extraction but also promoting production, processing and manufacturing," said Mlagui.
She said learning institutions can also learn something from miners who have a wealth of practical experience in the field of mining.
"We need to create synergy between modern and traditional methods of mining. Our miners have a lot of traditional knowledge and years of experience which you can harness," she added on Tuesday.
The CEMEREM project offers practical courses in mineral processing and engineering, environmental conservation and resource management.
According to the CEMEREM project coordinator Prof. Kiptanui Too, they are looking forward to rolling out a program to train 18 small scale miners this April.
Taita Taveta University Ag. Vice Chancellor Prof. Fred Barasa challenged the caucus to put more emphasis on sponsoring their residents to undertake short professional courses in order to build the capacity of residents within the Jumuiya ya Kaunti za Pwani (JKP).
"Every County government in the coast region should identify residents to offer scholarships for courses in the extractive industry to compliment those that will be offered by the institutions. We will also involve the County in developing projects and activities for implementation so that we can achieve our goals easily and effectively," said Prof. Barasa.
According to the JKP Secretary Emanuel Nzai bringing together universities in the coast region through this project will strengthen technical capacity and spur social economic transformation. The CEMEREM Project provides students with excellent capabilities to meet the dynamic challenges in the market.
The courses offered through this project are of international standards as the curriculum has taken into account the Kenyan-German standards.
Staff and students participate in exchange programme between Kenya and Germany Universities as the infrastructure of beneficiary institutions receive a facelift courtesy of Kenyan German Center of Excellence in Africa.
The project commenced in 2016 after a consortium of Taita Taveta University, HTW Dresden and TU Bergakademie Freiberg won the competition to set up a Kenyan German Centre of Excellence.
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