OPINION: Kenya’s President William Ruto may be a game-changer in the climate change commitment

Freelance Journalist

Climate change conversations have been live in Kenya’s public discourse for a long time. At the moment, the country faces drought, hunger and starvation in most parts of the Northern Frontier Districts, the upper Eastern, the coast as well as the North-Western of the Rift Valley – effects clearly attributable to climate change.

However, the implementation steps to mitigate these have remained dismal with few follow-up mechanisms in place. With the recent regime change in the East African country, a glitter of hope seems to cut through the horizon.

There have been notable impacts of climate change in Kenya and this is set to increase in the coming years if mitigation steps are not taken.

The most urgent risks of the climate crisis to human health in Kenya include geographic expansion of climate-sensitive vector-borne diseases, an increase in waterborne diseases, and the nutrition implications of food shortages due to long periods of drought, increased land-surface temperature and water scarcity impacting agriculture. 

The new President William Ruto has been very categorical and deliberate in his commitment to climate change and the attendant issues.

Though his manifesto ahead of the just concluded elections did not come with a clear stand-alone clause on climate change, his inaugural speech in Nairobi after his win was particular on his intentions for the subject. 

In his speech, Ruto noted, "... women and men, young people, farmers, workers, and local communities suffer the consequences of climate emergency."

Further to this, the newly elected President added; "We must act urgently to keep global heating levels below 1.5 Celsius, help those in need, and end addiction to fossil fuels."

These statements echoed a deliberate move by the new regime to prioritise climate change in its governance for the next five years. 

Conversely, going by past experience, many will take this as a speech just like any other. During the reign of the past two presidents, the conversation often featured but what did not follow was the actual implementation.

To seem to act differently, President Ruto has gone ahead in his recent communiquè on the organization of his government to create The office of The Climate Change Advisor to head a Climate Change Advisory Council domiciled in the office of the president that will report directly to the President.

This move was quickly extolled by the second-term Governor of Vihiga County, Dr Wilber Ottichilo who said, “in the past, Parliament always budgeted for climate change interventions but the monies were never used because there was no such council in place. Now that the President has instituted this council, it means funds for climate change intervention will reach the counties.”

Dr Ottichilo is the current head of climate change in the Council of Governors for a second term.

He obtained his doctorate in Natural Resource Management and Space Science from the University of Wageningen and the International Institute for Earth Observation and Geoinformation, The Netherlands.

This puts him at a vantage point of understanding the climate change issue adequately and being able to articulate the necessary measures for Kenya.

The President is also well versed in the technical understanding of Climate change considering his thesis at the PhD level entitled: Influence of Anthropogenic Activities on Land Use/Cover Changes and Environmental Quality of Saiwa Wetland Watershed, Western Kenya.

Additionally, the president holds a Degree in Botany and Zoology and a Master's degree in Plant Ecology all from the University of Nairobi.

Pundits look at him as a man armed with technical knowledge on the subject of climate change that remains an imperative of our time as well as wielding the goodwill to implement changes as a consequence of advisory from the Climate Change Advisory Council recently set up.

However, some are punching legitimate holes into the president’s commitment owing to some retrogressive policy positions that might impede the commitment to climate change.

The President’s regime has spoken about decriminalising charcoal burning and selling; an action climate change experts and activists believe will claw back the gains anticipated. 

Dr Koimbori, a climate change expert and founder of Climate Change Kenya notes that “This is going backwards really since it will encourage deforestation yet we are trying to increase the forest cover.”

Koimbori’s sentiments are also echoed by Prof. Oguge an Environmental Policy Expert in the Faculty of Law of the University of Nairobi who points out that, “When we say we want to reduce emissions, yet at the same time decriminalizing charcoal trade, it is confusing.”

Since this matter has been criticised by well-meaning citizens, experts, activists and scholars perhaps the climate change advisory council’s first task is cut out clearly – to advise the President of the need to change his position on charcoal burning.

President Ruto is set to replace his predecessor, former President Uhuru as chair of the Committee of African Heads of State on Climate Change.

During his inaugural address at the 77th Session of the UN General Assembly in New York in September 2022, President Ruto indicated his commitment to leading the African continent in what he termed as negotiating the delivery of finance and technology to support African nations in dealing with the effects of climate change in the forthcoming COP27 conference in Egypt.

President Ruto in a bid to demonstrate his passion for climate change added, “The latest report of the intergovernmental panel on Climate change reminds us, that we cannot afford to waste another moment debating the merits of doing something vis-à-vis doing nothing. It will soon be too late to reverse the cause of events and then even the best interventions will not suffice.”

The foregoing is a clear indicator that the President is indeed committed to the real issues of climate, has a clear technical understanding of the subject, and bears the much-needed goodwill and such may ensure Kenya reaps big in the Climate Change conversation for once.