Government to Release County Climate Resilience Investment Grant

Kiambu,

Tuesday September 5, 2023

KNA by Wangari Ndirangu

Kiambu County is among the counties that are set to benefit even as the National government Monday launched a Sh7.2 billion County Climate Resilience Investment Grant.

The grant will be handed over at the local level to support community resilient investments within individual Counties.

According to the Environment, Climate Change and Forestry CS Soipan Tuya, adequate and predictable climate finance is key for the implementation of climate action.

Speaking during the Launch of the Long-Term Low Emissions Development Strategy LT-LEDS), National Climate Change Action Plan 2023-2027 at the African Climate Summit that is being held in the Country, Tuya said the climate action plan calls for enhanced resource mobilization through bilateral, multilateral, and concessional funding.

The CS noted that the Financing Locally Led Climate Action program (FLLCA) approach the government is using is very aligned with the Bottom Up Economic Approach (BETA) by targeting the vulnerable communities at the very bottom of the pyramid.

FLLCA is one of the attempts and has crowd-funding from the World Bank, Governments of Germany, Denmark, Sweden, the Netherlands as well as the Government of Kenya to the tune of USD 295 Million.

“Over 80 percent of these funds will flow directly to our devolved units at the ward level to support local level-led climate action,” she said.

Kiambu Water, Environment, Energy, and Natural Resources County Executive Committee Member (CECM) David Kuria last year said the FLLCA program would increase Kiambu Counties’ capacity to respond to climate challenges while implementing locally driven initiatives for climate resilience.

“The initiative will concentrate on capitalizing funds by developing county capacity in planning and implementing climate measures involving citizenry through engagement in locally-led adaptation programs that are effective and reach the most at risk who include women, youth, persons with disabilities, elders, and other traditionally marginalized groups.

During Monday’s inaugural summit meeting, the CS also launched the reviewed National Climate Change Action Plan III for 2023-2027, which commits to addressing climate change in the next five years.

Kenya enacted the Climate Change Act in 2016, but in order to make it responsive to the aspirations of the Paris Agreement on sustainable development and alleviation of poverty, the Act has been amended to capture a regulatory framework for carbon markets, which will ensure high integrity, high quality and transparent engagements in the Carbon market framework.

Courtesy; KNA