Please download the PEI Country fact sheet on Kenya (PDF)


Basic facts of the PEI in Kenya

• The PEI Kenya project document was signed in August 2005. The programme of work was prepared jointly by the Government of Kenya, UNDP-Kenya, DFID and UNEP. 
• The programme is executed by the Government of Kenya through national partner institutions, led by the Ministry of Planning and National Development. The main institutions involved are: the Ministry of Planning and National Development, the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources, and the National Environment Management Authority.
• Approximately $2.2 million are committed to the project. Donors include DFID, the Government of Luxembourg, Government of Norway (through UNEP) and UNDP-Kenya. All funds are distributed through UNDP-Kenya.
• The programme implementation is supported by a PEI Secretariat comprising of a national project manager, an adviser, and a MPND seconded programme officer.
• The first phase of the PEI programme was initially envisaged to end in December 2008 however this was extended to December 2009 to allow for the completion of ongoing activities. A mid term review of the programme was carried out in 2008.

Main activities of Kenya PEI Phase I

• Improving the understanding of poverty and environment linkages through investigative studies at district level and undertaking economic assessment of Kenya’s natural resources focusing on key sectors supporting the national economic and poverty reduction.
• Strengthening Government capacity to deliver pro-poor environment policy through support towards the Environment Policy formulation process.
• Supporting the development of District Environmental Action Plans (DEAPs) in nine districts, including improving stakeholder participation in the DEAP formulation process and strengthening linkages with district development planning and monitoring processes.
• Developing tools for integration of environment into national budget, e.g. through Medium-Term Expenditure Framework and other sector Public Expenditure Review processes..

What has been achieved to date?

• Improved knowledge base and understanding on poverty and environment linkages
  Two background studies on improving understanding of poverty and environment linkages at district and national levels – “Poverty and Environment Issues: Governance, Institutions, Institutional Frameworks and Opportunities” and “Voices from the Field: Bondo, Murang’a and Meru South Districts” – were completed. These served to inform district environmental action planning and the Briefing Note titled “Making the Connection: Economic Growth, Poverty and the Environment”. 5,000 copies of the briefing note were distributed to all District Environment Officers, District Development Officers and PEI-Kenya institutional partners.  As an indication of improved understanding of the role of environment in economic growth and poverty reduction, PEI’s contribution was sought in the Vision 2030 process.

• Improved elaboration of District Environment Action Plans (DEAP)
  Three District Environment Action Plans (Bondo, Murang’a North and Meru South Districts) were completed with inputs from the PEI. The DEAP processes have served to raise the profile of environmental services and natural resource management in district planning processes, and the need for multi-sectoral planning. Draft Guidelines for Mainstreaming Environment in the Development Planning process were prepared drawing lessons from the DEAP process. A workshop is planned for the last quarter in 2008 to share lessons learned from the DEAP development process.

• Development of an environment policy for Kenya underway
  PEI supported the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources (MENR) to elaborate a “Road Map” to prepare an Environment Policy. The PEI supported the work of seven thematic taskforces and the National Steering Committee in the production of the Environment Policy Paper that fed into the Draft Environment Policy (June 2008) that covers sustainable management of ecosystems, sustainable use of natural resources, environmental stewardship, enhancing environmental quality, environmental research and monitoring, linkages with other sectors, and implementations strategies and actions.

• Cross-fertilisation between PEI-Kenya and PEI-Tanzania
  As part of the South-South cooperation that the Global PEI aims to facilitate, the Kenyan PEI team visited Tanzania in September 2006 to learn from the Tanzanian experience of mainstreaming environment. The key elements in the Tanzanian success in mainstreaming environment were identified and a list of follow-up actions for Kenya was agreed on.

• Improved Donor Coordination
  Clarity between donors on relationships and coordination modalities between technical assistance programmes working with MPND, MENR, NEMA and other institutions under the EMCA has been achieved in accordance with the Paris Declaration. PEI played a central role in achieving this, including facilitating a donor harmonisation workshop on the request of MENR. Through their respective advisers, PEI and the Danida/Sida Environment Sector Support Programme are working closely together, demonstrating how two programmes can complement each other and achieve real synergies.
  
  
• Integration of poverty/environment indicators in national and district planning and monitoring
  A study to support the Government of Kenya in developing a set of indicators linking poverty and environment was completed in 2009.  The study has identified contributions of poverty and environment linkages to the achievement of national and sub-national development objectives develop a core set of PE indicators, baselines and protocols for data collection. This indicator development process contributed to the ongoing review of national indicators for monitoring the implementation of Kenya’s Vision 2030 and Medium Term Plan. 

• Policy Brief on Achieving the MDGs and Vision 2030 Through Sustainable Development
  The brief examines national commitments to environmental sustainability and makes recommendations for enhancing national capacity for environmental valuation of natural resources, harmonisation of legislative frameworks including economic instrument and strengthening the national system of accounts in order to meet Kenya’s long term development objectives.

Lessons learned

• It is important to demonstrate the links between poverty and environment at the national and local levels in language familiar to planners and policymakers.
• Restrained Government capacity needs to be addressed in moving the mainstreaming processes forward whilst ensuring full Government leadership and ownership of the process.
• Given limited financial and time resources, there is a need to have a clear programme focus and clearly prioritise activities linked to ongoing national and sector priorities and policy implementation.
• The review of the PEI Kenya program by the government of Kenya provided useful insights to improve project implementation including the need to strengthen national ownership by including a broader range of stakeholders and enhancing the integration of the PEI Kenya interventions with the main activities of the Ministry of Planning, National Development and Vision 2030