Kenya and Germany will strengthen their partnership in energy, focusing on renewables, building resilient energy infrastructure, and deployment of appropriate technology to drive efficiency and sustainability.
This emerged on Tuesday, March 29, when CS Juma held bilateral talks with German Federal Minister for International Economic Cooperation Svenja Schulze at her office in Berlin.
“In this regard, we tasked our teams to start on specific tasking. We also discussed the urgency of ensuring that green financing is accessible, affordable and flexible.” Juma said.
Juma is in Germany to attend the eight Berlin Energy Transition Dialogue.
They also discussed how projects are able to drive and incentivise innovation, particularly at the local level
Juma was accompanied to the meeting by Kenya Ambassador to Germany Tom Amolo and senior Ministry of Energy officials.
Germany is one of the largest donors of international climate financing to developing countries, with an intended contribution of 4 billion euros in 2020.
According to Germany Ambassador to Kenya Annett Günther, her country has, for over 20 years, been working with the Kenyan government and institutions to create pioneering clean energy projects.
“The reason for this is obvious: Given its geographical location, Kenya has a great potential for not just wind, solar and hydro power, but also geothermal power which Kenya is one of the top 10 producers in the world,” Ambassador Gunther said in an OPED.
German development cooperation has so far supported installation of more than 300 megawatts of renewable energy in Kenya – more than a tenth of the entire electricity generating capacity. The most prominent example is certainly Germany’s support to Olkaria – the pioneering geothermal power plant in Africa.
“Yet, Germany has also been crucial in assisting Kenya bring energy to those not connected to the national power grid: 800,000 Kenyans now enjoy electricity provided by Kenyan-German projects for solar home system. And the Kenyan-German “clean cooking” project has brought improved cooking stoves to more than seven million Kenyans,” she said.
Meanwhile, CS Juma on Wednesday met Africa for Siemens Energy Managing Director Nadja Haakansson, MD on the sidelines of the BETD 2022 meeting.
The two reviewed cooperation in systems development along the energy value chain, options for use of captive power as well as application of innovations and resource saving technologies.
