NAIVASHA, Kenya — With floods, droughts and extreme weather becoming more frequent across the country, Kenyan lawmakers are gathering in Naivasha this week to sharpen their role in responding to the climate crisis.
The five-day workshop, set to begin on Wednesday, brings together members of Parliament and key government officials to focus on how best to support locally-led climate action and ensure public money meant for these initiatives is well spent.
The forum is backed by the National Treasury and convened under the Parliamentary Caucus on Climate Action, led by Senator Moses Kajwang’ of Homa Bay and Njoro MP Charity Kathambi. It’s designed to turn political will into practical tools, policies, and laws.
“This isn’t just about speeches. It’s about moving from awareness to action,” Sen. Kajwang’ said ahead of the retreat. “If we want to see real change, then Parliament must lead from the front.”
The meeting is part of Kenya’s broader efforts to address climate change through the Financing Locally-Led Climate Action (FLLOCA) programme a multi-donor initiative backed by the World Bank, the Governments of Denmark, Sweden, the Netherlands, and Kenya.
The goal is simple but ambitious: to help counties develop and fund climate solutions that are tailored to their unique challenges, from rising lake levels to failed harvests.
According to a brief shared by the organisers, the workshop will focus on financing mechanisms, data use, community engagement, and oversight of climate funds. Participants will also draw from lessons learned during COP29, the UN climate summit where Kenyan MPs said they saw the urgent need to build stronger climate literacy at home.
Raising the bar for local action
FLLOCA was launched to close the gap between national climate policy and local reality. In rural areas especially, residents often bear the brunt of climate shocks but lack the tools or funding to respond effectively.
The Naivasha meeting will provide MPs with training on how to draft climate-sensitive laws and scrutinise spending. It will also explore how Kenya can blend international support with local priorities.
“MPs need to see climate finance not as a buzzword but as a tool to serve their people,” said Faith Abeka, a climate policy researcher at the University of Nairobi. “Workshops like this one are a vital part of that education.”
Lawmakers are also expected to hear from stakeholders who want stronger public engagement in climate decisions from how projects are selected to how funds are monitored.
“It’s not enough to have money,” said John Mutua, a civic leader from Makueni. “Communities must be involved every step of the way, or the whole thing risks becoming a top-down exercise.”
Politics, partnerships, and pressure
As Kenya steps into more global climate discussions, domestic leadership has come under scrutiny. Critics say while the country has strong climate plans on paper, implementation has been slow and uneven. Counties often struggle to access national funds or lack the technical capacity to design effective projects.
The Naivasha retreat, organisers say, is also about building trust and partnerships across institutions. With both houses of Parliament represented, the workshop hopes to establish a network of climate champions within the legislature who can mobilise broader support.
Another key goal is to develop oversight tools that ensure transparency in how climate funds are spent a hot-button issue in a country where mismanagement of public funds is a perennial concern.
“Climate action is not a side show,” MP Kathambi said. “It is central to our development. And Parliament has a duty to make sure every shilling counts.”
As Kenya braces for more climate extremes in the years ahead, the outcome of this workshop may well shape how effectively the country prepares for what’s coming next not just in policy, but in practice.
