The production of oil in Turkana will start without any hindrance as a revenue-sharing agreement has been reached, the President has said.
Uhuru Kenyatta announced on Saturday that the public will get 75 percent through the national government, the county
20 percent and the local community five percent.
He spoke at State House, Nairobi,
after a deal was struck on the Petroleum (Exploration and Production) Bill.
“We now have an understanding that can put Kenya on the map of oil exporting countries," he said.
"We will intensify exploration efforts in Turkana and the rest of the country now that we have a legal instrument that will guide how oil and gas will be handled."
The first trucks of crude oil are expected to be ready by
June 1.
In February, Turkana leaders were confident that Parliament would amend the Bill to give host communities 10 percent of total revenue, up from the proposed five percent.
Residents held protests against the Bill that gave the county 15 per cent and the national government
80 percent.
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Uhuru thanked Governor Josphat Nanok and other Turkana leaders for finding quick solutions to problems surrounding the exploration.
Deputy President William Ruto also attended the meeting.
The Governor said the leaders and the people were in full support of
exploration as disagreements were resolved.
He said the Council of Governors, which he chairs, was also satisfied.
"The impediment that the people were concerned about, and that the council also raised in its petition to Parliament, has been discussed and resolved," he said.
He added that the county will
support the fast-tracking of oil transport by road and the construction of the pipeline to Lamu Port.
The Turkanas are one of the smaller of Kenya's
tribes, inhabiting a county in the remote far north bordering South Sudan, Ethiopia and Uganda.
Turkana is the poorest county in Kenya; the Kenya National Statistics office says 88 percent of the people live below the poverty level, compared to 45 percent nationally.
Oil was discovered in Lokichar, 90 kilometres from Lodwar, in 2012, and most locals hope the start of output will accelerate development.
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