NAIROBI, Dec. 7 (Xinhua) -- Kenya is optimistic that a majority of its citizens would transition to using renewable and clean energy by 2030, an official said Tuesday.
Paul Mbuthi, deputy director of renewable energy at the Ministry of Agriculture, said the country has prepared an action plan that will see it implement its energy compact to achieve the ambition.
An energy compact is a commitment outlining the specific actions a country or organization would take to move toward net-zero emissions.
"We have prepared a detailed plan to implement the energy compact that will push people from fossil fuels to clean energy. For Kenya, clean cooking is now an important issue," he said during a webinar on removing barriers to access renewable energy in Kenya.
He noted that through government policies like the removal of value-added tax, the use of bio-ethanol and electricity are gaining traction.
The government is currently working on making public schools, hospitals and prisons, the biggest consumers of firewood in Kenya, transition to renewable energy, according to him.
According to the Ministry of Energy, there are 129 prisons, some 40,000 schools and hundreds of hospitals across the east African nation. In Kenya, only 1.5 million households use clean fuel, while the numbers of households using firewood, kerosene or charcoal stand at 5 million, 1.8 million and 3.3 million, respectively. Enditem