Kenya has taken a decisive step towards tackling two of its most pressing challenges; climate change and public health, while improving education outcomes.
Last week, at the Kenya Institute of Curriculum Development, the State Department of Basic Education, through the National Council for Nomadic Education in Kenya, working with Verst Carbon, unveiled the Institutional Clean Cooking for Innovative and Sustainable Financing of Universal Climate Smart School Meals Programme.
The vision is bold; transition the over 40,000 public schools in Kenya to fuel-efficient, metered cooking technologies by 2030. This means reaching over 10 million students while cutting emissions and reducing pressure on forests. It is a plan that will deliver climate, health, and educational benefits in one sweep.
Current reliance on firewood consumes an estimated 10 million trees each year, costs the government nearly Sh15 billion annually, and produces millions of tonnes of Carbon Dioxide emissions.
The smoke-filled kitchens not only harm the environment but also jeopardise the health of cooks and children. Transitioning to clean cooking technologies addresses these problems head-on.
Some 183 centralised kitchens and over 9,000 decentralised cooking systems will be built. The technology, designed by FAITH Engineering Works Ltd, is expected to cut emissions by up to 85 per cent, with early pilots already confirming significant reductions.
The project will be implemented by Nairobi-based Verst Carbon, registered under the Gold Standard Programme of Activities, and could generate over 5.1 million metric tons of carbon credits annually.
“This is a catalytic entry point for national transformation, where climate action, education and dignity intersect,” said Ali Mohamed, Kenya’s Special Envoy for Climate Change, during the event.
Carbon credit revenues will be reinvested to finance infrastructure and potentially expand school feeding programmes, aligning with the Climate Change Act 2023 and Kenya’s new Carbon Market Regulations.
The benefits go beyond climate. Cleaner kitchens improve working conditions, protect biodiversity by reducing deforestation, and support Kenya’s ambition for universal school meals. It is also a lesson in how to align global climate finance with local development priorities.
The support from the Rockefeller Foundation, World Food Programme, SEforALL, and the Global Energy Alliance for People and Planet shows that partnerships can scale solutions that work.
Kenya’s approach, combining a whole-of-government strategy with private sector innovation, should inspire other nations. Ministries of Education, Environment, Energy, Agriculture, Water, and the Treasury are all working in sync, the kind of joint action needed to meet our commitments under the Paris Agreement and the Sustainable Development Goals.
This project is not a side issue. It is central to climate action, education quality, and public health.
Kenya is showing that with vision, coordination, and innovation, transformation is possible.
The writer is a climate action enthusiast and a communications specialist at Windward Communications Consultancy.
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