Government to Lift Ban on Scrap Metal – CS Matiang’i

The government on Wednesday announced that it will lift the ban on scrap metals that has been in place since January.

In a statement by Interior CS Dr. Fred Matiang’i, scrap metal dealers will be expected to reapply for licenses and belong to associations under the new regulations by the government.

The lifting comes after scrap metal dealers pleaded with President Uhuru Kenyatta to lift the ban imposed to curb cases of vandalism in the country.

In January 2022, President Uhuru Kenyatta announced a moratorium on scrap metal trade in the country as part of Government efforts to end the rising cases of vandalism of key public installations.

“As of today, we will no longer allow, and we have put a moratorium on the export or the buying or selling of any scrap material until we have put in place proper guidelines that will ensure that material is not coming from the hard-won investments that the Kenyan people have made,” the Head of State said. 

Kenyatta said that the moratorium would stay in place until after the Government puts in place adequate measures to effectively police the sourcing, trade and export of scrap metal.