Treasury unveils Sh9b war chest to combat climate change impact

The National Treasury has disbursed Sh9 billion to counties in the fight against climate change impacts.

Through five years, the Financing Locally-Led Climate Action (FLLoCA) program has disbursed the amount to 45 counties.

Already, the first disbursement of Sh1.1 billion for the County Climate Support Grant was made early this year, followed by a second disbursement in June, which availed Sh7.3 billion to 45 counties.

This was revealed at the launch of a report by the Kenya Meteorological Department titled “Climate Change Impacts in Kenya”.

Peter Odhengo, Head of the Climate Finance and Green Economy Unit and FLLoCA Programme Coordinator at the National Treasury, explained that substantial financial support has been provided under the programme.

“We met our end of the bargain during the Africa Climate Summit, and today we are happy that local communities have access to this money,” Odhengo said yesterday.

He confirmed that the average amount allocated to each county is Sh100 million.

Looking ahead, the Treasury is also mobilising funds from the private sector. Through Senate approval, the Treasury aims to secure an additional $700 million (Sh93 billion) for climate adaptation.

The Meteorological Department has released a report on the economic impacts of climate change which indicates that if no action is taken on economic policies, the country would lose between two to three per cent of GDP.

Initially dismissed as a minor issue, the severity of climate change became apparent as the country witnessed increased frequency of drought and floods, resulting in significant economic losses.

“The National Treasury, in collaboration with the Ministry of Environment, implemented a plan to establish a framework by 2010. This led to the establishment of climate finance and green economy initiatives to coordinate the mobilisation of climate financing on a larger scale,” Odhengo explained.

By 2016, Sh241 billion had been allocated to climate change financing, with more than 70 per cent directed towards mitigation and green energy, which was later recognised as a misplacement of resources.

Dr Ahmed Idris, Secretary-General of the Kenya Red Cross Society, highlighted pressing issues from climate impacts saying climate disasters in Kenya had risen by three per cent rise.

“Hundreds of thousands of families are currently seeking resources to rebuild their homes destroyed by previous floods. This reality forces them to spend more of their disposable income on recovery activities, reducing their livelihood activities and income,” he said.

Idris pointed out the shortage of resources for responding to climate emergencies despite advances in weather forecasting.

 “In Kenya, we are doing well with weather forecasts from the Meteorological Department. However, we lack the resources to respond to emergencies before they happen. We often support communities after they have already been affected,” he said.

Regarding global funding, Idris said, “Kenya needs $65 million (Sh8 billion) for climate adaptation between 2020 and 2030.

‘‘However, the global community promised developing countries $600 billion (Sh79 trillion) between 2020 and 2025, which has not been fulfilled. As a result, we have very little money to support communities dealing with climate emergencies they did not cause.”

He stated, “More than 70 per cent of climate finance funding goes into mitigation measures, especially green energy. While this is good, it leaves our communities more vulnerable to climate impacts. We need to reverse this trend and allocate more resources to adaptation.”

Dr Festus Ng’eno, Environment, Climate Change and Forestry PS, indicated the importance of equity in climate initiatives.

“It is crucial to prioritise equity in our climate initiatives, there is a need to increase funding for research that contextualizes global model outputs, sector-specific costs of climate impacts,” he stated.

Senator Hamida Kibwana called for coordinated climate adaptation strategies and policies.

“It’s crucial to integrate coordinated climate adaptation strategies and policies that are sensitive to climate issues now. We must listen to communities and collaboratively create sustainable climate solutions,” she said.