Turkana County is increasingly emerging as an important frontier for mineral exploration and investment in Kenya. While it is endowed with a wide range of minerals, including gold, copper, chromite, graphite, gypsum, limestone, garnets, sapphires and uranium, the opportunity presented by gold deserves particular attention.
Government and county geological records have identified gold occurrences in several parts of Turkana, including Nadapal, Lokitang, Nadwat, Makutano, Loima and the Kainuk belt.
The Turkana County Integrated Development Plan lists gold among the county’s mineral occurrences, while the Kenya Yearbook 2025, citing the State Department for Mining, identifies Nadapal, Lokitang and the Kainuk belt among Kenya’s gold-bearing areas.
The wider national picture also demonstrates why Turkana deserves attention. The State Department for Mining has reported that artisanal and small-scale mining accounts for more than 90 percent of Kenya’s gold production and involves more than 250,000 miners nationally. This means Kenya’s gold story is already largely an ASM story, and Turkana is still at an early stage of understanding and developing its potential.
There are already signs of this transition, in 2024, Turkana County Government facilitated a community-consent process for proposed gold exploration at Nameyana in Loima, while AHG Metals Kenya has since secured gold mining licences in the county.
But identifying mineral potential is only the beginning, the real opportunity is to build a mining economy around that potential. This means moving beyond scattered artisanal activity toward a more organised, productive and investable mining ecosystem.
The government has an important role to play in improving geological information, streamlining licensing, developing infrastructure and strengthening security, while ensuring that formalisation is practical and accessible to miners.
The sector will also require access to affordable finance, modern and appropriate equipment, mineral-processing technologies, technical services and structured markets. Without these enablers, mineral potential will remain largely potential.
There has already been progress on formalization, with two artisanal mining permits issued in Turkana, an important step towards bringing miners into the formal economy and creating a foundation for safer and more accountable operations. The State Department’s wider policy direction also recognizes the need to formalize ASM, strengthen cooperatives, improve access to finance and appropriate technology, establish processing and value-addition facilities, and address health, safety and environmental risks.
However, formalization cannot end with the issuance of a permit, a licensed miner must also be able to access geological advice, safe mining methods, appropriate equipment, finance and legitimate markets. This is where professional expertise and private-sector investment become critical.
There is also potential for significant scope for technology to improve mineral recovery, reduce unsafe practices and minimize environmental impacts while increasing the value retained within mining communities. Investment opportunities also extend well beyond extraction, into equipment supply, mineral processing, laboratories, logistics, finance, infrastructure and responsible mineral trading.
This requires a coordinated effort. The national government must provide a predictable regulatory environment and strengthen geological data and infrastructure. The county government has an important role in community engagement, local development and creating an environment in which investment can take root. Industry and investors can bring capital, technology and markets, while professionals provide the technical expertise required to develop the sector safely and responsibly.
The Turkana Gold Summit and Minerals Expo 2026, held in Lodwar from 15th to 17th September, provided an important platform to begin and sustain this conversation. The Summit brought together government, investors, mining professionals, communities, technology providers and other players across the mineral value chain. As an annual event, it will continue to connect Turkana’s emerging mining opportunities with the capital, expertise and partnerships needed to develop them responsibly.
Turkana’s opportunity is ultimately bigger than gold, done responsibly, mining can create jobs, build technical skills, stimulate local enterprises, attract infrastructure investment and open up one of Kenya’s least explored economic frontiers.
The question, therefore, is no longer simply how much gold Turkana has. A mineral occurrence is not yet a mining economy. The real task is to build the geological knowledge, investment, technology, markets and institutions capable of turning that potential into productive mines and lasting value for the people of Turkana.