On Monday, 12 May 2025, the EELA Kenya Country Window project held its first Project Steering Committee (PSC) meeting at the Golden Tulip Hotel, Westlands, Nairobi. The event marked the official start of the PSC’s oversight role, affirming stakeholder alignment and commitment, and reviewing the project’s progress, implementation and governance mechanisms.
The meeting brought together key stakeholders including the UNIDO Kenya Deputy Representative, Ms. Lynette Luvai, who shared UNIDO’s programmatic framework, the Programme for Country Partnership, which is currently under review. She mentioned that the framework will have key focus areas which include agro-processing, environment, and energy - under which the EELA project falls.
The Industrialization Secretary, Prof. Erastus Gatebe, officially launched the PSC on behalf of Dr. Juma Mukhwana, Principal Secretary at the State Department for Industry, and delivered his remarks. He thanked UNIDO and Sida for their support which would propel Kenya in realizing its Sustainable Development Goals. He encouraged the team to widen the scope on the reduction of the use of firewood towards other sectors like sugar cane, the fishing industry and others where clean and green production practices are required.
Mr. Adam Öjdahl, First Secretary and Regional Energy Advisor at the Embassy of Sweden, emphasized the significant responsibility placed on the PSC, given that Kenya serves as the first country window for the EELA, with similar projects under development in Zambia and Zimbabwe. He noted that the other countries are looking to Kenya’s achievements as a model for learning and implementation.
Eng. Isaac Kiva, Co-chair of the PSC and Secretary, Renewable Energy at the State Department for Energy, noted that the Energy Policy 2018 was recently reviewed to ensure inclusion of clear objectives and actions to promote energy efficiency in the country. He emphasized that the implementation of EELA Kenya Country Window is a timely intervention towards the achievement of the Energy Policy 2025-2034.
The EELA Kenya Country Window project is set to play a pivotal role in advancing Kenya’s energy efficiency and sustainability goals, while also responding to the country’s specific needs through tailored actions, setting a benchmark for similar initiatives across the region. For more updates on EELA Kenya, please contact: Alaeldin Mohamed a.mohamed2 [at] unido.org or Elin Karlsson e.karlsson [at] unido.org.
