đ Summit Coverage
28 October 2025 | Nairobi, Kenya
Kenya is taking ambitious steps to tackle one of its quietest but most dangerous public health and environmental challenges: institutional dependence on smoky biomass stoves. At the High-Level Summit on Unlocking Institutional Clean Cooking in Kenya, leaders from government, international agencies, and the private sector gathered to confront the statistics and chart a path forward.
Across the country, schools, hospitals, and prisons continue to cook daily using firewood and charcoal. It's a costly and harmful habit. The Ministry of Environment estimates that over 45,000 schools spend about KSh15 billion every year on fuelwood. The environmental impact is severe, with millions of trees felled, tens of thousands of hectares of land cleared, and countless people exposed to toxic smoke every day.
The summit aimed to change that story, bringing together policy-makers, investors, and innovators to discuss how to turn Kenya's clean cooking ambitions into reality. Here's what leaders who spoke at the event said:
1 Amb Ali Mohamed: "The pathway to a healthier Kenya runs through our kitchens"
Ambassador Ali Mohammed set the tone early, calling institutional clean cooking "a health and human dignity issue."
"Across Kenya, our schools, hospitals and correctional facilities still rely heavily on firewood and charcoal. Over 45,000 schools alone spend close to KSh15 billion every year on fuelwood. This dependence is unsustainable, environmentally, economically and in terms of public health."
He cited grim statistics showing that indoor air pollution kills around 26,000 Kenyans every year. "Behind those statistics are cooks, children, patients and officers exposed daily to toxic smoke. Transitioning to clean cooking in our institutions is a health and human dignity issue."
He linked Kenya's overreliance on biomass directly to deforestation and biodiversity loss. "Biomass accounts for more than two-thirds of our energy use, yet it comes at the cost of our forests," he warned. "Improving efficiency in institutional cooking is one of the most immediate ways to relieve that pressure."
2 Amb. Philip Thigo: "Finance models must work for people"
For Amb Philip Thigo, the clean cooking challenge is not just about stoves and fuels, but systems.
"The question before us is not whether finance exists, but whether our financial models truly work for people. We must reimagine how capital flows, ensuring that investments in clean cooking directly reach those who need them most."
Amb Thigo spoke about Kenya's efforts to build digital public infrastructure that can power energy transitions through data and transparency, noting that these platforms connect finance, data and delivery, ensuring that resources reach communities faster and more effectively.
đĄ Innovation Hub: "This is an investment in the health and future of our young people. Institutions like JKUAT are setting up a Centre of Excellence in Clean Cooking to anchor innovation locally."
His office is working closely with the United Nations Development Programme to ensure that these innovations lead to real-world impact. He also credited Kenya's First Lady for her long-standing leadership in the clean cooking movement. "She took Kenya's message to the world in Glasgow, long before it became fashionable to talk about clean energy transitions. That kind of leadership has been instrumental in keeping this issue on the national agenda."
3 Dymphna van der Lans: "Kenya is already a trailblazer in clean cooking finance"
The numbers shared by Dymphna van der Lans were sobering but hopeful.
"Schools spend about KSh15 billion annually on firewood. Transitioning these institutions to clean cooking would require around KSh45 billion, but the benefits, whether environmental, health and economic, are worth more than KSh14 billion each year."
Van der Lans emphasised that Kenya's policy framework, including its National Cooking Transition Strategy, offers a foundation for progress. "What we need now are national systems that connect policy and implementation," she said.
đ Global Context: The International Energy Agency estimates that Africa needs about US$2 billion annually until 2040 to achieve universal clean cooking access. Kenya is already showing how carbon finance and innovation can help close that gap.
4 Dr Fati Billow: "Kenya is sending a clear signal to Africa"
Dr Fati Billow placed Kenya's efforts in a continental context. "Clean cooking is one of the most powerful interventions for health, climate and gender equality," she said. "Across Sub-Saharan Africa, millions of hours are lost each day collecting fuel, and millions of lives are shortened by household air pollution."
She referenced the 2024 Paris Clean Cooking Summit, which reframed the issue as a development priority. She noted that time, health and forests are being lost together, "and we have the tools to change that".
â Progress Report: "The country is moving decisively on institutional clean cooking, even as challenges remain, particularly the need for clearer tax incentives for LPG and a coherent transition framework for public institutions."
"What we see in Kenya is a signal to the rest of the region. When government, finance and innovation align, the clean cooking transition can accelerate faster than anyone expects."
đ Summit Impact
The High-Level Summit on Institutional Clean Cooking brought together diverse voices united by a common vision: transforming Kenya's institutional kitchens from sources of pollution into models of sustainable development. With strong leadership, innovative financing, and proven technologies, the path forward is clear.