By TOBIAS CHANJI
Nairobi, Kenya: Kenyan lawyers lack adequate exposure and training to participate in the mining industry.
The Law Society of Kenya (LSK) has said that most mining companies, including foreign ones with offices in Kenya, have for a long time been dependent on foreign legal minds to draw contracts and perform other tasks.
“We don’t have many lawyers in Kenya who are educated in oil and gas,” said LSK Chairperson Eric Mutua.
He added that foreign legal experts have been exploiting lack of local expertise in Kenya to reap big.
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Echoing the sentiments, Mr Charles Kanjama, LSK treasurer and a counsel member, said a lot of concern has been raised over the surging number of foreign lawyers in the country with specialisation in the oil industry.
“What is undeniable is that Kenya doesn’t have sufficient capacity on extractive mining concerning technical knowledge and financial support. About 75 to 80 per cent of legal fees in mining is earned by foreign firms,” noted Kanjama.
