Effects of the Mining Legal Framework on Women Participation in Artisanal and Small Scale Mining: Lessons from Taita Taveta County (Kenya)

Abstract

Artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM) is increasingly the focus of the national efforts to effectively regulate the sector as an initiative to ameliorate national benefits by increasing women participation in the sector while seeking to address challenges that they face. Despite women's participation in the ASM sector being estimated at nearly 50% in the mining areas, their significant participation has largely been overlooked. The study investigated the effect of legal framework on women participation in ASM. To achieve this, the study used data from a cross-sectional survey of 146 women working at different nodes of the ASM sector in Taita Taveta County. Descriptive statistics and linear regression was employed to analyse data. The results show that the requirements for mining permits have a positive effect on women participation in ASM while the process of obtaining a mining license had a negative influence. We recommend policy frameworks that facilitate easy access to mining licenses by women in the ASM sector. Specifically, there is a need to establish a field office for offering the ASM mining licenses and reduce bureaucracies associated with obtaining mining permits.