Keypoints:
- Ruto targets unprocessed gold exports
- Draft policy envisages raw-mineral export bans
- Kenya is expanding domestic processing capacity
KENYA is moving towards restrictions on raw mineral exports after President William Ruto announced plans to outlaw shipments of unprocessed gold, accelerating a wider government drive to process more of the country’s mineral wealth at home.
The announcement gives fresh political impetus to Kenya’s draft Minerals, Mining and Beneficiation Policy 2026, which explicitly proposes legislation to curb raw-mineral exports through restrictions and export bans while expanding domestic processing and value addition.
Gold becomes first test
Ruto said during remarks at Kisumu State Lodge on September 14 that Kenya intended to stop exporting unprocessed gold and require the mineral to pass through local refining and approved trading channels before being sold abroad.
The move places gold at the centre of a much broader government effort to capture more value from Kenya’s mineral resources instead of allowing much of that value to be created after raw commodities leave the country.
Ruto also said the Central Bank of Kenya would become a priority buyer of locally mined and processed gold, potentially giving artisanal and small-scale miners a more formal domestic market while increasing state oversight of trading.
The government is simultaneously trying to expand refining capacity.
A KSh5.8bn ($44.8m) gold refinery project in Kakamega forms part of that strategy, alongside additional refining projects in Nairobi. Government documents describe the Kakamega facility as being developed rather than already operating commercially.
That distinction matters because Kenya’s ability to restrict raw exports will depend heavily on whether domestic processors can handle sufficient production at competitive prices.
Policy already points to restrictions
Ruto’s announcement does not represent a sudden departure in policy.
Kenya’s draft Minerals, Mining and Beneficiation Policy 2026 identifies the export of minerals in raw form as a major weakness in the country’s mining economy and proposes legislation to encourage domestic processing through measures that include export restrictions and bans.
The draft policy says mining, which currently contributes about one percent of GDP, has the potential to contribute up to 10 percent by 2030, while creating more employment and retaining a larger share of mineral revenues inside the country.
Kenya exported minerals worth $219.97m in the 2024/25 financial year, down from $296.93m the previous year, according to State Department for Mining figures. Gold exports were valued at $25.22m.
The policy also seeks to formalise artisanal mining, improve geological information, attract investment and expand local processing infrastructure.
Fourteen minerals have been identified as strategically important as Nairobi seeks a greater role in supply chains linked to renewable energy, advanced manufacturing and emerging technologies.
Critical minerals add geopolitical weight
The beneficiation push is becoming increasingly important as Kenya courts investment in critical minerals including rare earths, niobium, graphite, copper and other resources sought by major industrial economies.
Africa Briefing has reported that Kenya and the United States are deepening critical-minerals cooperation centred on local processing, placing value addition at the heart of Nairobi’s discussions with Washington.
Washington said in September that it would support development of Kenya’s critical-minerals processing industry, reinforcing a wider US effort to diversify supply chains and reduce dependence on concentrated sources of strategically important minerals.
Kenya’s Mrima Hill deposit on the coast, associated with rare earths and niobium, has become part of that growing international interest.
For Nairobi, the challenge is to turn geopolitical demand into industrial activity inside Kenya rather than simply increasing exports of unprocessed ore.
Africa pushes beyond extraction
Kenya’s direction also reflects a wider shift across mineral-rich African economies.
In West Africa, Ghana has tightened controls on specified unrefined gold doré exports as part of efforts to strengthen domestic refining, formalise gold trading and increase state oversight.
Zimbabwe has similarly used export restrictions to encourage processing of minerals before they leave the country, with its mineral beneficiation drive reshaping how raw resources are sold abroad.
The broader argument across the continent is increasingly straightforward: countries rich in minerals risk capturing only a fraction of their economic value if extraction takes place locally while refining, manufacturing and technology-intensive production remain abroad.
That debate has intensified as demand rises for minerals needed for electric vehicles, batteries, renewable-energy infrastructure and advanced technologies. The shift forms part of a broader continental debate over Africa’s push to move beyond raw mineral exports towards processing and manufacturing.
But export restrictions alone cannot create a successful beneficiation industry.
Reliable electricity, transport infrastructure, technical expertise, capital, transparent pricing and sufficient volumes of feedstock are equally important. Restrictions introduced before processing capacity is ready can create bottlenecks, encourage informal trading or leave producers without viable buyers.
Implementation now matters
Kenya already regulates mineral exports through the Mining Act, with exporters required to obtain permits for individual shipments.
However, Ruto did not set out a commencement date or cite a new legal instrument imposing a blanket prohibition on all unprocessed mineral exports in the remarks reviewed for this story.
His announcement therefore establishes a clear political direction, while the draft beneficiation policy provides the broader framework for extending restrictions across the mineral sector. It should not yet be interpreted as evidence that a comprehensive nationwide raw-mineral export ban is legally in force.
The next test will be implementation.
Nairobi must determine which minerals will be covered, when restrictions will take effect, what processing thresholds will apply and whether domestic facilities can absorb production without making Kenyan miners less competitive.
If those elements align, Kenya could retain significantly more value from its mineral wealth while building new industrial capacity.
The objective is increasingly clear: Kenya wants its mineral economy to extend well beyond extraction and the mine gate.
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