There is need to rethink Kenya's climate financing framework

Global leaders and think tanks unanimously acknowledge the impending climate crisis if nations stick to the Business-as-usual approach. Developed and developing nations have overcome the rejection hangover amid overwhelming empirical and scientific evidence disputing climate change skeptics and naysayers.

The recent UN climate summit (COP29) revealed wide cracks on the way forward to address the climate change monster that poses a threat to current and future generations. Although global climate advocacy has helped whip anti-climate change groups into action, sharp differences were apparent when the subject of climate financing was presented on the floor.

Developed nations committed $300 billion a year until 2035 against the estimated $1.3 trillion a year required by developing nations to enhance their capacity to mitigate against the detrimental effects of climate change. To understand their perspective, 23 developed nations are responsible for more than 50 per cent of all historical CO2 emissions. Shockingly, G20 nations accounted for 80 per cent of historical cumulative fossil and C02 emissions.

Africa is responsible for less than 4 per cent of the overall greenhouse gas emissions yet is the most vulnerable to extreme weather events such as floods, heatwaves, and drought.

The controversial climate financing debate at COP29 underlines the urgent need for Kenya to rethink her climate change financing framework. President William Ruto echoed similar sentiments during COP28 and called for international collaboration and collective action to address the triple planetary crisis of biodiversity loss, climate change, and pollution.

Despite the recognition of the climate change crisis in Kenya, the private sector appears to lead climate action initiatives while the government takes a back seat. While the commitment to plant 15 billion trees within 10 years was touted as a game changer, the rising illegal deforestation and tree harvesting ultimately dilutes the effectiveness of the policy. 

The Climate Change (Amendment) Act 2023 was expected to actualise Kenya’s climate change action plan and integrate proactive measures to lower emissions and expand Kenya’s carbon sinks. The legislation introduced the concept of an open carbon market that sought to create a mechanism for private and public entities to transfer and transact emission reduction units, including the extension of carbon sinks in Kenya.

However, the tight fiscal space, coupled with the lack of a solid climate change action plan and implementation framework neuters the ability of the legislation to tackle climate change, guarantee Kenya’s socio-economic resilience, and realise Paris Agreement deliverables, and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.

The collapsed Finance Bill 2024 proposed the introduction of an eco-levy as a tool to raise resources to tackle climate change and transfer responsibility to the largest polluters. However, the failure to ring-fence the resources collected from the eco-levy and other climate-based resources ultimately defeats the purpose of the levy since the finances will likely finance other government functions.

However, establishment of a Climate Change Fund will ensure that levies and taxes charged on emitters are ring-fenced to support specific programmes that will foster climate resilience and guarantee environmental protection rights for the benefit of the present and future generations.

So what will the implementation mechanism of a Climate Change Fund look like?

A substantial amount of the funds collected will be allocated to key government agencies, particularly the Kenya Forest Service to expand tree cover through afforestation and reforestation to expand the nation’s carbon sink network through the purchase of carbon credits to ensure that Kenya meets the target of 25 per cent tree cover by 2030, and 35 per cent tree cover by 2050. Also, the resources will help fence off forested areas prone to illegal tree harvesting and expand the human capital to enhance the protection of existing and new forest ecosystems.

A proportion of funds collected from the fund should be allocated to Numerical Machining Complex for the development, maintenance, operation, and management of Numerical Waste Aggregation Centres in all counties. Electronic waste, scrap metal waste, plastic, rubber waste, and glass waste are a growing concern in modern waste management. The aggregation of such waste will ease access to such waste by private stakeholders and spur the growth of innovative startups engaged in recycling and reuse of waste.

A percentage of funds collected by the Fund should be allocated to finance the establishment of Mazingira Green Parks as key carbon sinks to help in de-carbonation efforts and ensure environmental justice through access to clean green parks. This will ensure Kenya achieves a target of 5,000 people per green park by 2050. After all, the entire Nairobi population cannot solely depend on Uhuru Park.

A percentage of the funds will be allocated to stakeholders in the energy sector to aid in the development and expansion of the electric charging relevant infrastructure that will aid the transition towards clean energy, including the Kenya Power and Lighting Company. This will bolster the equitable transition to clean energy across all counties and bypass the current geographical barrier that limits electric mobility to urban spaces.

A proportion of the funds will be allocated to a loan authority such as Uwezo Fund and Women Enterprise Fund ring-fenced to provide loans and grants to innovative climate action and waste management programs led by youths, women, and persons with disabilities. The Kenya National Innovation Agency will establish Startup Incubators and Accelerators within the waste aggregation zones in all counties to identify and finance innovative startups to accelerate creativity and job creation.

Governance experts have challenged the overwhelming number of special funds in Kenya and the subsequent duplication of functions. However, pigeonholing the climate agenda with other government functions will continue to derail Kenya’s sustainability efforts and further expose the country to climate change risks, including floods, displacement, drought, pollution, poor nutrition, and poor physical and mental health.

While these proposals gather dust in Parliament’s Public Petitions Committee, Kenyans will continue to suffer the inevitable climate change disasters as we await solutions birthed by Western nations for Kenyan problems.