The National Economic and Social Council (Dublin) is setting up structures for local funding of climate change projects such as renewable energy and afforestation as a part of wealth creation under the Vision 2030 program.
The Finance ministry, helped by carbon trading consulting company Bea International, is in the early stages of setting up the Nairobi Carbon Exchange where buyers and sellers of Carbon Emission Reduction (CER) will trade. CER is the unit of exchange in the carbon credit market and is equivalent to one ton of carbon dioxide that is withheld from the atmosphere through green activities.
We feel we should be faster. Smaller countries like Mauritius have gone further than us in climate change investments and trading in carbon emissions, said NESC economic director Leonard Kimani.
The exchange will offer banks an opportunity to evaluate proposals for setting up projects like wind farms and solar energy parks, an area they have avoided for lack of understanding and expertise on profiling risks inherent in such projects, according to a survey by the International Finance Corporation (IFC).
Kenya is better placed to emerge as a regional carbon emission trading hub, said Treasury PS Joseph Kinyua. We have started a process of establishing a carbon emission trading scheme in Nairobi to pioneer the carbon market in Africa. Treasury said it was increasingly getting inquiries from foreign banks such as HSBC Bank and JPMorgan wanting to partner in trading of carbon credits.
Kimani said the novelty of climate change investment projects and technical terms used were holding back the growth of the industry in Africa.
We are seeking ways to enhance the flow of simple information to communities affected by climate change. If people residing in Mau Forest knew about income opportunities inherent in restocking the forest, they would not resist moving from there, he said.
NESC has already coordinated the drafting and presentation of the draft Climate Change Bill 2010 to the Cabinet. The document provides direction on how Kenya will reduce the effects and adapt to climate change.
The proposed Bill will fight off the destructive effects of climate change and enable investors to earn money from the global carbon market by engaging in projects.
The draft proposes that six months after it becomes law, the government will establish a National Clean Energy Development Mechanism Authority to give direction on trading in carbon emission reduction.
The authority will evaluate projects to find out which qualify for investment. Projects with higher sustainable development benefits and which are likely to succeed are accorded higher priority, notes the draft Bill.
It recommends that the government releases guidelines on better land use to prevent destructive practices. It also proposes the publication of an energy management plan and setting up of mandatory energy efficiency targets for companies.
The Finance ministry, helped by carbon trading consulting company Bea International, is in the early stages of setting up the Nairobi Carbon Exchange where buyers and sellers of Carbon Emission Reduction (CER) will trade. CER is the unit of exchange in the carbon credit market and is equivalent to one ton of carbon dioxide that is withheld from the atmosphere through green activities.
We feel we should be faster. Smaller countries like Mauritius have gone further than us in climate change investments and trading in carbon emissions, said NESC economic director Leonard Kimani.
The exchange will offer banks an opportunity to evaluate proposals for setting up projects like wind farms and solar energy parks, an area they have avoided for lack of understanding and expertise on profiling risks inherent in such projects, according to a survey by the International Finance Corporation (IFC).
Kenya is better placed to emerge as a regional carbon emission trading hub, said Treasury PS Joseph Kinyua. We have started a process of establishing a carbon emission trading scheme in Nairobi to pioneer the carbon market in Africa. Treasury said it was increasingly getting inquiries from foreign banks such as HSBC Bank and JPMorgan wanting to partner in trading of carbon credits.
Kimani said the novelty of climate change investment projects and technical terms used were holding back the growth of the industry in Africa.
We are seeking ways to enhance the flow of simple information to communities affected by climate change. If people residing in Mau Forest knew about income opportunities inherent in restocking the forest, they would not resist moving from there, he said.
NESC has already coordinated the drafting and presentation of the draft Climate Change Bill 2010 to the Cabinet. The document provides direction on how Kenya will reduce the effects and adapt to climate change.
The proposed Bill will fight off the destructive effects of climate change and enable investors to earn money from the global carbon market by engaging in projects.
The draft proposes that six months after it becomes law, the government will establish a National Clean Energy Development Mechanism Authority to give direction on trading in carbon emission reduction.
The authority will evaluate projects to find out which qualify for investment. Projects with higher sustainable development benefits and which are likely to succeed are accorded higher priority, notes the draft Bill.
It recommends that the government releases guidelines on better land use to prevent destructive practices. It also proposes the publication of an energy management plan and setting up of mandatory energy efficiency targets for companies.
