Following the development of six deals agreements between President William Ruto and the United Kingdom's Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, the Sh500 billion investment projects have been honoured.
The projects have so far been honoured after the COP27 agreement in 2022.
One of the projects, the Menengai Geothermal project worth Sh12.5 billion is approximated to generate 35MW of electricity, providing approximately 750,000 Kenyans with affordable, clean energy.
The project has also created 200 jobs during its construction and is proceeding to financial close with construction expected to begin shortly after.
Another Sh31 billion agreement has also been reached with the Kenyan Development Corporation and UK-funded investor United Green to establish an area bigger than Nairobi National Park for climate-smart farming – this will save Kenya $200m annually on food imports and help reduce Kenya’s trade deficit.
Further, the British International Investment (BII) will also issue Sh1 billion ($7.1m) for two projects in the country, as part of a wider package of investment in Africa.
In its breakdown, a Sh321 million ($2.1m) will provide solar-powered and water-efficient irrigation systems to 9,000 farmers in Kenya, which will help to increase farmers' income as well as build their resilience and adapt to the impact of climate change.
"The upfront cost of the irrigation systems will also be reduced by 25-40% through an innovative carbon credit facility, making the systems more affordable for farmers."
An additional Sh765 million ($5m) will go towards the manufacture of 100 electric buses in Kenya that will meet Kenyan’s demand for affordable but clean public transport.
"These will replace diesel-powered polluters, they will stop 5,000 tonnes of CO2 entering the atmosphere every year."
"These investments are flagship projects of the UK-Kenya Strategic Partnership an ambitious five-year agreement which is unlocking mutual benefits for the UK and Kenya and does not load Kenya with unsustainable debt."
