NAIROBI, April 22 (Xinhua) -- Kenya said on Thursday that it will commit approximately 868 billion shillings (8 billion U.S. dollars) to combat climate change in the next ten years.
Chris Kiptoo, principal secretary, Ministry of Environment and Forestry told journalists in Nairobi that the funding from domestic sources will be used for adaptation and mitigation measures against climate change.
"This is the commitment we are making because we see and recognize that climate change is real and we must put our own resources to deal with it," Kiptoo said during the launch of Bio foods product annual sustainability report on the reduction of carbon emissions.
He added that Kenya is experiencing the negative impacts of climate change despite being a relatively small contributor to greenhouse gas emissions.
"The recent phenomenon of rising water levels in the country's rift valley has had a huge impact on local communities and is an indication that climate change is a real threat," he said.
According to the ministry of environment, the climate change funds will be used by the government across a number of sectors such as water, transport, energy, infrastructure, agriculture, forestry, and waste management.
Kiptoo said that the bulk of the resources will be used in adaptation to climate change as opposed to mitigation measures. Enditem