Kenya needs Ksh.133 billion to achieve universal clean cooking - Ruto

The President said nearly one billion Africans still rely on traditional fuels that threaten public health, education, and the environment.

Speaking during a high-level virtual event on keeping clean cooking high on Africa's development agenda, President Ruto said the continent cannot afford to slow down with less than five years remaining to achieve Sustainable Development Goals targets.

"Nearly one billion Africans still rely on traditional and polluting cooking fuels, with profound consequences for public health, education, environmental sustainability and climate action," the President said.

The event was initially intended to be the Second Africa Clean Cooking Summit to be hosted in Nairobi.

The forum was also addressed by International Energy Agency Executive Director Fatih Birol, Norway Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre, and United States Secretary of Energy Chris Wright.

The President said the clean cooking challenge extends beyond households, noting that thousands of schools, hospitals, prisons and other institutions across Africa still depend on firewood, increasing pressure on forests and exposing millions of people to harmful air pollution.

He reaffirmed Kenya's commitment to clean energy, saying the country has made clean cooking a national development priority through the Kenya National Cooking Transition Strategy, which aims to achieve universal access to clean cooking by 2028.

However, he acknowledged that the ambition will require substantial financing. Kenya, he noted, needs about $435 million (Ksh.56.5 billion) to achieve universal household access to clean cooking and an additional $590 million (Ksh.76.7 billion) to transition institutions to cleaner energy solutions.

"The financing challenge extends across Africa. Closing the continent's clean cooking access gap will require investment at an unprecedented scale," he said.

President Ruto welcomed the announcement of $900 million (Ksh.117 billion) in new commitments towards the clean cooking agenda.

He commended the launch of the Clean Cooking Security Programme, describing the initiatives as critical steps toward accelerating the transition.

He also announced that Kenya will become an inaugural member of the newly integrated Clean Cooking Alliance under the International Energy Agency, saying the move demonstrates the country's commitment to advancing clean cooking both domestically and across the continent.

The President noted that Kenya's partnership with the alliance has already facilitated the establishment of Africa's first Clean Cooking Delivery Unit, which is helping speed up the adoption of clean cooking solutions in institutions.

"As host of the rescheduled summit, Kenya remains fully committed to sustaining this momentum. We look forward to welcoming leaders once again in Nairobi and to advancing this shared agenda together," he said.

President Ruto urged African leaders and development partners to translate the pledges made during the meeting into tangible outcomes that improve the lives of millions of people across the continent.

"Together, let us turn today's commitments into lasting impact for the people of Africa," the President said.

Dr Birol said there has been strong commitment to clean cooking in the past two decades, noting that many African countries have made clean energy transition a national priority.

He commended President Ruto for taking leadership in ensuring increased access to clean energy in Kenya and in Africa.

Dr Birol said sponsors and development partners have pledged $2.2 billion to be released in tranches between 2024 and 2030. So far, he disclosed, $750 million has been disbursed to African countries.

He pointed to positive gains in Africa, stating that there has been an increase in the uptake of clean energy. 

Although the numbers are encouraging, he added, there is still a long way to go considering that four out of five people in Africa still use poor cooking practices.

"This causes 850,000 premature deaths due to pollution and respiratory diseases," Dr Birol pointed out.

Prime Minister Støre said clean cooking is the most underfunded in global development and climate policy. He called for urgent action, saying the right policies have been established and strong partnerships formed.

Access to clean energy, Støre explained, will lead to multiple gains, including improved health, empowerment of women, protection of biodiversity, accelerated economic growth and climate justice.

"It is encouraging to see that African countries are making progress and showing that affordability barriers to clean energy can be overcome," Støre said.

Secretary Wright also commended President Ruto for robustly pushing the clean cooking agenda.

"You have been delivering leadership and setting targets for clean energy access," Wright said.

Noting that access to clean energy remains a universal challenge, he however ermed the issue as the "largest solvable problem".

Wright added the solution, which the United States had adopted, is the provision of abundant energy.

He regretted that about a quarter of the global population still uses traditional cooking methods that were used ages ago.

These practices, he added, are behind poor health, limited lifespan and widespread poverty.

Access to clean cooking, he explained, is a major liberating step for women who spend hours looking for traditional fuel and cooking in smoky rooms.