Kenya's climate architecture rests on the Climate Change Act, Cap. 387A, assented on 6 May 2016 "for the development, management, implementation and regulation of mechanisms to enhance climate change resilience and low carbon development for the sustainable development of Kenya." The Climate Change (Amendment) Act 2023 extended this into carbon markets, and the Climate Change (Carbon Markets) Regulations 2024, gazetted on 7 June 2024, now govern the full project lifecycle, from concept note and design document through authorisation and issuance, through a National Carbon Registry, sector registries, and mandatory community development agreements. Kenya's current NDC, submitted in December 2020, targets a 32% reduction in emissions against business as usual by 2030.
Projects
Africa Sand Dam Foundation sand dams, southeast Kenya
Community-built sand dams that store seasonal river water in sand, so dryland families in Ukambani have water close to home.
Ampersand e-moto battery-swap network
A Kigali-based battery-swap network for electric motorcycles, extending into Kenya.
BasiGo electric buses
Electric buses for private matatu and bus operators, leased on a Pay-As-You-Drive model with charging and servicing included.
Bboxx Kenya solar home systems (Gold Standard PoA)
Operating in Kenya since 2011, now part of Bboxx's Gold Standard-certified pan-African carbon-credit programme.
Chyulu Hills REDD+ Project
Maasai-led carbon project safeguarding the cloud forest and savanna corridor between Amboseli and Tsavo.
Eden: People+Planet
Hiring local people to restore mangroves and forests across the Global South, one village at a time.
Efficient and Clean Cooking Stoves for Households in Kenya (Jikokoa)
The Jikokoa stove has reached over 3.6 million households in Kenya since 2016, under Gold Standard.
GivePower Solar Water Farm, Kiunga
GivePower's first solar water farm, desalinating seawater for a coastal Kenyan fishing community.
Hongera Reforestation
Restoring degraded water-catchment forest on Mount Kenya and the Aberdares, targeting 27,800 hectares and around 10.7 million trees.
Kasigau Corridor REDD+
A community-owned dryland forest corridor linking Kenya's Tsavo East and Tsavo West national parks.
Kenya Agricultural Carbon Project (KACP)
The world's first project to certify soil-carbon credits from smallholder sustainable agriculture, storing carbon in both trees and soil.
Kenya Biogas Programme
A Gold Standard-listed national biogas programme run by African Bioenergy Programmes Ltd since 2009.
KOKO Kenya Clean Cooking Fuel Utility
A bioethanol cooking-fuel utility reaching over a million households in Kenya through automated fuel points.
Lake Turkana Wind Power
Kenya's largest wind farm: 365 turbines in Marsabit County feeding the national grid.
Mikoko Pamoja
The world's first community-led mangrove blue carbon project, in Kenya's Gazi Bay.
Northern Kenya Rangelands Carbon Project
A contested soil-carbon and grazing-management project across community conservancies in northern Kenya, one of the world's largest.
Papariko
Kenya's first registered blue carbon project, restoring degraded coastal mangroves under a triple-stacked standard.
Regreening Africa
A UN World Restoration Flagship regreening degraded farmland across eight African countries.
Restore Africa
A six-country restoration programme whose lead organisation entered liquidation in July 2026.
Roam Rapid / Roam Air (Roam Electric)
Kenyan-assembled electric motorcycles and buses, begun as a Swedish university research project before relocating production to Nairobi.
Sanergy (Nairobi organic and fecal-waste-to-value)
'Fresh Life' toilets across Nairobi's informal settlements, composting waste and feeding organic matter to black soldier fly larvae.
Spiro electric motorcycles and battery swapping
Electric motorcycles and battery swapping across African markets, with locally assembled vehicles.
TakaTaka Solutions
A Kenyan waste company that collects, sorts and composts or recycles most of what it picks up in Nairobi and Mombasa.
TIST: The International Small Group and Tree Planting Program
Subsistence farmers in small groups planting and GPS-counting tens of millions of trees for carbon income.
Trees for the Future
Farmers planting Forest Gardens to end hunger, restore degraded land, and break the cycle of poverty.
Vanga Blue Forest
Kenya's second community mangrove project, scaling the Gazi Bay model to 460 hectares.
Regulation
Framework law
"3. Objects and purposes (1) This Act shall be applied for the development, management, implementation and regulation of mechanisms to enhance climate change resilience and low carbon development for the sustainable development of Kenya."s.3(1)
Establishes Kenya's overarching climate governance framework (Climate Change Council, Cabinet Secretary duties, county mainstreaming) and, via the 2023 amendment, the legal basis for carbon markets and the National Carbon Registry (s.23G).
Issuing body: Ministry for Climate Change / Climate Change Council — no existing entity id · Corroborated
Carbon market
"3. The object of these Regulations is to— (a) provide a framework for implementation of carbon projects; (b) create incentives to support greenhouse gases emissions reduction and removal targets in line with Nationally Determined Contribution; and (c) provide guidance on the annual social contribution for carbon..." / "11. The head of the Designated National Authority shall be the National Registrar of the National Carbon Registry established under section 23G of the Act."reg. 3 (Object); reg. 11 (National Registrar)
Sets Kenya's full carbon-project lifecycle (concept note → design document → authorisation → issuance), a National Carbon Registry plus sector registries, mandatory community development agreements and an annual social contribution paid into the Climate Change Fund.
Issuing body: 2A · Corroborated