TV OYOMINTO
Kenya has rolled out a nationwide digital system designed to improve the collection, monitoring and management of mineral royalties, as the government seeks to increase revenue from the country’s growing mining sector.
The new Royalty Management System, RMS, provides a digital platform through which mineral producers can declare production, have royalties assessed, make payments and allow authorities to monitor compliance.
The system has been deployed for the State Department for Mining through CSM Technologies’ Kenyan subsidiary.
The rollout comes at a time when Kenya’s mining and quarrying sector is recovering after a contraction recorded in 2024. According to figures from the 2026 Economic Survey, the sector grew by 14.9 per cent in 2025.
The State Department for Mining reported mineral exports worth approximately 220 million US dollars in the 2024–2025 period, generating about Sh991.3 million in royalties.
The new system is intended to improve the government’s ability to track mineral production and ensure that royalties are collected accurately.
Under Kenya’s legal framework, holders of mineral rights are required to pay royalties on minerals produced and sold.
The revenue-sharing framework provides for 70 per cent of royalty proceeds to go to the national government, 20 per cent to county governments and 10 per cent to host communities.
This distribution makes accurate collection particularly important because mining communities are expected to benefit directly from the exploitation of mineral resources in their areas.
The digital platform is expected to provide real-time information on royalty accruals, payments and compliance.
It will also be integrated with mining licence records and use secure audit trails and role-based access. The government hopes the system will reduce manual processes, improve reconciliation and strengthen accountability.
The system is designed to serve different categories of mining operators, including large-scale companies, medium-sized businesses and artisanal and small-scale miners.
Authorities are facilitating registration and onboarding through Madini House in Nairobi and county mining offices.
The introduction of the platform comes amid growing interest in Kenya’s mining potential.
The country has deposits of minerals including gold, titanium, soda ash, limestone and other industrial minerals. However, the sector has historically faced challenges related to informal mining, revenue collection, licensing, environmental management and benefit-sharing with local communities.
Digital monitoring could therefore provide the government with better information about the amount of minerals being produced and sold.
For counties and communities hosting mining activities, improved royalty collection could potentially translate into additional resources for local development.
However, the success of the system will depend not only on technology but also on effective enforcement and transparent management of the revenues collected.
Mining communities have often demanded greater participation in decisions affecting natural resources in their areas and a larger share of the economic benefits.
The 10 per cent allocation for host communities under the revenue-sharing arrangement is therefore likely to attract particular attention as the digital system becomes operational.
The government will also need to ensure that smaller and artisanal miners are able to use the new platform without facing excessive administrative barriers.
Authorities say technical assistance and registration support will be provided as the system is rolled out.
The digital platform also comes as Kenya increasingly turns to technology to modernise public revenue collection and regulatory systems.
For the mining sector, the government hopes the system will reduce leakages, strengthen compliance and provide a clearer picture of the country’s mineral economy.
The broader objective is to ensure that Kenya receives a fair return from its natural resources while improving accountability to counties and communities where extraction takes place.
If effectively implemented, the system could become an important tool in strengthening mineral governance and increasing public revenue.
But stakeholders will ultimately judge the initiative by whether the technology produces measurable improvements in collections, transparency and benefits for mining communities.
The launch therefore marks a significant shift toward digital mineral governance, but its long-term success will depend on enforcement, public oversight and the ability of government agencies to translate better data into better revenue management.
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