Kenya

According to the Kenya Consumer Segmentation report (see related resources below), almost eight-in-ten Kenyan households primarily use solid cooking fuels, primarily wood (63%) and charcoal (15%). In rural areas, 84% of households use wood as their primary source of cooking fuel.

Related Resources

Kenya Consumer Segmentation

Nationally Determined Contributions

Kenya’s NDC integrates their commitment to clean energy technologies with the aim of reducing overreliance on wood fuels by 2028. The National Climate Change Action Plan 2018-2022 also prioritizes the promotion of the transition to clean cooking with alternative clean fuels such as LPG in urban areas and clean biomass (charcoal and wood) cookstoves and alternatives in rural areas.

However, the distribution and use of improved biomass cookstoves are not enforced by any government law, policy, or regulation, and there is no obligation for households to use improved cookstoves. Kenya seeks to implement its NDC with both domestic and international support, estimating that over USD 40 billion will be required for mitigation and adaptation actions.

The NDC Support Program in Kenya will be implemented jointly with the USAID-supported Low Emissions and Climate Resilient Development (LECRD) project, with the goal of supporting the implementation of Kenya’s NDC. Strategic partnerships among various ministries, departments, and agencies working with the UNDP and other stakeholders will be enhanced to achieve this goal. The program is also engaged in a range of strategic partnerships at the global level.

Other Relevant Policies

The clean cooking sector in Kenya experienced a significant policy-related setback in June 2020 when the Finance Act, 2020 was signed into law with the reinstatement of 16% VAT on previously exempted clean cooking items. Te revised custom duties became effective as of July 1st, 2020 and are shown in the table below. LPG was granted a one-year extension of zero-rating, but the change in its VAT status was enacted in July 2021. The Government of Kenya provided VAT exemptions to some technologies including biogas, ethanol and briquettes, but improved cookstoves and LPG were not exempted.

A key policy objective of the Kenyan government is to meet the SDG 7 target for universal access to modern cooking solutions by 2028. This deadline was initially in 2030 but was brought forward during the 2019 Clean Cooking Forum to reflect the issue’s elevated prioritization within the government. Kenya intends to achieve this goal with 42% adoption of clean cooking fuel use (mostly LPG, but also allowing for biogas, ethanol, and electricity), while solid fuel-improved cookstoves would be required to serve the needs of the remaining 58%.

This table shows the latest Kenyan Duty and VAT for clean cooking items, as of FY 2021/2022:

Several policy actions aim to support progress towards the SDG 7 target for universal access to modern cooking solutions. Among the most notable, the National Energy Policy of 2018 aims ‘to facilitate provision of clean, sustainable, affordable, competitive, reliable and secure energy services at least cost while protecting the environment’. Kenya’s National Climate Change Action Plan aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 7.1 MtCO2e by 2022, largely through the uptake of alternative fuels and more efficient cookstoves. Key aims of the plan are to increase the number of households using improved biomass cookstoves by 4 million, construct 7,100 digesters for domestic and institutional use, and promote alternative cooking solutions such as LPG and ethanol.

N.B. Funding amounts may be split across multiple countries