The Mountain Journal
President William Ruto has appointed Kirinyaga Governor Anne
Waiguru to
the newly established National Climate Change Council in the
wake of her
ongoing campaigns to address climate-related challenges.
Waiguru’s has been on a relentless campaign for the country
to adopt
interventions for climate change mitigation following a
severe drought, the
country’s worst climate related crisis in the recent past
that has affected
food security.
The council will leverage the country’s resources and
expertise in support
of the whole-of-government approach to addressing the
climate crisis.
The body which will provide an overarching national climate
change
coordination mechanism for the country will be chaired by
President Ruto.
Other members of the council include Deputy President and
Cabinet
Secretaries responsible for; Environment and Climate Change
Affairs,
National Treasury and Energy. Others will be drawn from
various
government agencies and county governments.
The appointment was communicated through a letter dated
December 8,
2022 from State House Chief of Staff and Head of Public
Service Felix
Koskei.
The council together with the Climate Change Directorate was
established
through Climate Change Act which commenced operation on May
27,
2016.
Waiguru who is also the chair of the Council of Governors
(COG) has
termed climate change as a real threat to mankind as
evidenced through
an increase in frequency and severity of disasters such as
droughts, floods,
landslides and influx of diseases and pests.
“The issue of climate change is a matter of concern for
Kenya because
despite contributing the least to global emissions, it has
suffered the
ravages of floods, landslides, droughts and other natural
calamities.
Droughts have continuously threatened food security, through
crop failure,
loss of livestock and people as well,” she said.
She says that lack of adequate funding has remained a major
constraint to
the implementation of climate change interventions by the
county
governments.
One of the responsibilities of the council will be to
approve the revised and
updated National Climate Change Action Plan, advise
governments on
policies and laws necessary for climate change response and
attaining low
carbon climate change resilient development.
The council will also administer climate change funds and
set targets for
the regulation of greenhouse gas emissions and providing
advise on how to
mainstream climate change into the education sector.
Last week, Waiguru said county governments have set aside
Ksh. 877
million for climate change mitigation and adaptation
initiatives.
The COG Chair said the devolved units have been undertaking
various
initiatives dealing in mitigation and adaptation and have
put in place bills to
enable them to allocate at between 1-3% of their development
budgets.
She pointed out that 44 counties have established County
Climate Change
Funds through enacting requisite climate change
legislations, 45 have
already established Climate Change Units, while 30 of them
have set up
ward climate change planning committees.
The governor said that there is need to follow though the
COP27
discussions on the operationalization of the financing
instrument to support
loss and damage accruing from climate change impacts to
countries worst
hit by Climate Change, as well as provision of improved
funding for
implementation of gender action plans for developing
countries.
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