Tata Chemicals Magadi shutdown: Ruto defends closure as DCP leaders accuse govt of threat to jobs and water supply

President William Ruto defended the government's decision to end Tata Chemicals Magadi Limited's operations in Kajiado County. Ruto argued that the company had extracted resources from Lake Magadi for decades without creating jobs, industries, or economic opportunities for residents. He stated that Tata Chemicals had held a license to exploit resources at Lake Magadi for over a century but failed to establish significant manufacturing industries in Kajiado.

The President announced that a new investor would be required to establish manufacturing plants in the county, including a glass processing company and a chemical processing company, before being allowed to exploit the resources. The DCP lawmakers, allied to the Democracy for the Citizens Party, strongly opposed the closure, accusing the government of threatening livelihoods and raising questions over its intentions concerning the area's natural resources.

They claimed that the closure could affect more than 100,000 people who rely on the company directly or indirectly and accused the President of seeking greater control over Kenya's natural resources, including potentially valuable lithium deposits and oil prospects in the Magadi area.