Kenya

In the heart of East Africa, Kenya is well performing in terms of economy. Since 1997, AFD has supported Kenya in financing low-carbon infrastructure, promoting access to essential services, particularly in urban areas, supporting public policies through the private sector, and protecting the country's biodiversity.
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Réhabilitation du barrage de Sasumua au Kenya
AFD and Kenya: supporting balanced and resilient growth.
Géothermie -  favoriser une croissance kenyane sobre en carbone © James Keogh

Accompanying the energy transition

Centrale électrique géothermique d'Olkaria I et IV / James Keogh

Accompanying the energy transition

In Kenya, AFD is one of the main donors of the electricity sector, with more than 900 million EUR committed since the beginning of our activities in the country.


We finance public enterprise projects (such as KenGen, Kenya Power, Ketraco, or GDC) as well as private actors (through the SUNREF program) aiming at:

  • developing renewable energies: wind, solar, geothermal, biomass, hydroelectricity;
  • improving energy efficiency and reducing consumption;
  • strengthening the infrastructure of the electricity transmission and distribution network to meet rising energy demand;
  • connecting new users to support the Kenyan government's goal of achieving universal access to electricity in the short term.


AFD also supports the government and the regulator in conducting strategic studies and supporting the preparation of sector reforms.

Securing water supply and sanitation

A man at a sanitary block in Kibera / James Keogh

Securing water supply and sanitation

In the face of growing urbanization, AFD is supporting government measures to ensure that urban populations have access to more reliable water services. We also address the funding gap in the particular area of sanitation, paying particular attention to respect for the environment and the protection of water resources.


We intervene:

  • in the strengthening of drinking water production and distribution facilities, sewage treatment and the optimization of network management by the operating companies (we intervened in the three largest cities of the country: Nairobi, Mombasa and Kisumu);
  • in water management (by monitoring water discharges from the main cities around Lake Victoria).

Supporting the development of transport infrastructure

Terminal 1 at JKIA International airport / KAA

Supporting the development of transport infrastructure

AFD's actions focus on:

  • airport improvement, renovation and expansion works;
  • port capacity development to facilitate trade and improve freight transport in Kenya and at regional level;
  • the construction or rehabilitation of rural roads;
  • in the future, funding for urban mobility, promoting low-carbon systems that are resilient to the impacts of climate change.

Stimulating private investment in the social and productive sectors

A nurses cleans a newborn / Sarah Waiswa pour l'AFD

Stimulating private investment in the social and productive sectors

We work in the fields of health, education and SMEs, through:

  • funding of social health organizations;
  • strengthening the skills of medical staff;
  • support to university hospitals for a specialized offer;
  • credit lines to banks to support investment in universities;
  • the African Guarantee Fund guarantee fund as a shareholder;
  • the ARIZ guarantee solution offered to banks.

 

Protecting and enhancing biodiversity

Reintroducing giraffes in Meru Park / Nicolas Garnier AFD

Protecting and enhancing biodiversity

To enable participatory management of biodiversity, existing protected areas and ecosystem valuation for the benefit of all, we finance:

  • reforestation programs;
  • technical assistance missions (elaboration of the national "Climate Plan");
  • measures to combat global warming;
  • adaptation of ecosystem services in rural areas;
  • the valorization of natural products by local actors to generate income and develop sustainable tourism.
4
million people have an increased access to water
275,000
new households have access to electricity
1,500
km rural roads rehabilitated

Located in East Africa and bordering the Indian Ocean, Kenya counts 48 million inhabitants. Thanks to major reforms carried out with the support of the International community, it has become the region’s third economy and records a strong growth (5.7% anticipated for 2017-2019).

However, this growth doesn’t benefit all: even though the country has seen a middle class emerge in the past years, more than a third of the population still lives below the poverty line. Despite the performance of some sectors (telecommunications, renewable energies), infrastructure is not keeping pace with the economic development.

But the potential is there: a young population, a dynamic private sector. The country is a pioneer in the geothermal sector and, on the regional integration side, benefits from the common market that was established by the East African Community (EAC) on all the territory.

Working with Kenya since 1997, AFD is focusing on infrastructure in the energy and transports areas, on urban planning with a focus on water, and on supporting the private sector, particularly SMEs. We include environment preservation in our projects.

AFD's Kenya office is directly attached to the East Africa regional office. Our Nairobi agency has a regional competence in the four other EAC countries (Uganda, Tanzania, Burundi and Rwanda), as well as in Somalia since 2016.

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Institutional document

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