The impact of climate policies on Kenya’s development: Analysing the trade-offs
Posted: 14 October, 2024 Filed under: Uday Makokha Keya | Tags: African countries, carbon dioxide emissions, carbon tax., climate crisis, climate policies, developed countries, developing countries, eco levy, environment, global warming, Kenya, Loss and Damage Fund, monetary funds, plant trees, underdevelopment Leave a comment
Author: Uday Makokha Keya
Third-year law student, Kabarak University
“African countries are bearing the brunt of the climate crisis and for this reason, we believe it is time we have a conversation on carbon tax.[1]”
This echo’s president William Ruto’s speech on climate change sometime last year. Following this speech Kenya introduced tax on machines and motor vehicles based on the engine capacity of the vehicle,[2] and additional charges commodities that have a negative impact on the environment.[3]
The imposition of the eco levy has the potential to result in a low rate of development in the country as it will decrease the rate of industrialisation, since many industries use heavy machinery. This is also evident by the increased tread towards automation and robotics even by service industries.[4] Consequently, enacting these laws, could limit the use of machines that have a negative impact on the environment and may lead to underdevelopment as most investors may be discouraged from investing in industries in the country.
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