Nairobi: The move by parliament to slash climate change funding by 50 percent to counties risks eroding gains made in combating the adverse effects of climate change in the country. In the current financial year, Parliament reduced funding for climate-led actions from Sh9 billion to Sh4.9 billion, a move that exposes the countries to vagaries of nature. In the past, Kenyans have incurred huge losses running into billions of shillings due to adverse effects of climate change such as increased flooding and prolonged drought seasons.
According to Kenya News Agency, Finance Locally - Led Climate Actions (FLLoCA) coordinator Peter Odhengo stated that the move to slash the budget for climate actions will be detrimental to the country's mitigation responses. Odhengo highlighted that the fund supports counties' climate-led action plans at ward levels to cushion the most vulnerable groups through local solutions.
Currently, Odhengo mentioned that the program has funded 2,145 projects across 1,350 wards across the country within four key sectors: water, smart agriculture, disaster risk management, and clean cooking. For counties to benefit from the fund, they must allocate 1.5 percent of their development budgets to climate change actions programs, and this year, 42 counties have contributed Sh8.2 billion to the kitty.
Speaking in Naivasha during an engagement with the Senate Committee on Environment, Odhengo explained that under the fund, every County receives over Sh200 million annually for climate actions. Odhengo expressed concern that the plan by parliament to slash funding for climate-led actions, coupled with reduced funding from global players, will adversely impact programs to combat nature vagaries.
Senator Kajwang', the chair of the parliamentary caucus on climate actions, noted that parliament passed the Climate Change Act (2016), which introduced the crucial fund. However, he regretted that over the last nine years, the Climate Change Council established under the Act has never been reconstituted due to ongoing litigations. The Senator also mentioned that the Kenyan parliament has benefited from over Sh100 million from the Global Green Climate Fund for capacity-building purposes.
Charity Kathure, Chair of the National Assembly Departmental Committee on Environment, Forestry, and Mining, emphasized the need to involve more than 150 lawmakers in the caucus projects implementation. She noted that climate-induced damages have exposed the country to increased damages by floods, while prolonged drought seasons have led to significant losses in pastoralist communities.
Senator Joe Nyutu, a member of the committee, expressed regret over the slashed budgetary allocation, noting that it should be increased to combat the effects of global warming and sustain climate change programs.