Kenya attains key milestone in sustainable buildings

Britam Towers in Upper Hill, Nairobi is the first building in Kenya to receive the Excellence in Design for Greater Efficiencies certification. [David Gichuru , Standard] Kenya has reached a milestone of one million square metres of green-certified floorspace, saving energy and water and reducing harmful emissions. Through modifications and designs that allow for large-scale energy efficiencies, the Excellence in Design for Greater Efficiencies (EDGE)-certified structures will offset 9,000 tonnes of carbon annually across the country, equivalent to taking 2,000 cars off the road each year. The 212 EDGE-certified buildings in Kenya include hospitals, offices, residential homes, hotels, warehouses and industrial facilities, with Britam Towers being the first building in Kenya to receive the certification. Other notable projects include The Aga Khan University and Garden City, while Mvule Gardens by 14 Trees in Kilifi is the first EDGE-certified, 3D-printed residential development in Africa. Combined, these buildings will save almost 900,000 cubic metres of water and 32,000 megawatt hours of energy per year, or the equivalent of providing 25,000 people with water for a year and powering approximately 2,900 homes annually. EDGE, an innovation of the International Finance Corporation (IFC) and a member of the World Bank Group, focuses on supporting property owners and developers to make buildings more resource-efficient. The tool has certified more than 100 million square metres worldwide, with 10 per cent of this space in Africa. It allows developers, building owners and investors to assess the environmental and economic impact of a design decision within minutes since the certification process is completely done online. "Reaching one million square metres of EDGE-certified floor space in Kenya is a powerful testament to the country's growing commitment to sustainable development and climate resilience," said Mary Macharia, EDGE Green Buildings Country Lead for Kenya. "EDGE is not just a certification but a catalyst for behavioural change in design and construction, which is unlocking new levels of performance across both commercial and affordable housing projects." The construction industry is a significant source of global carbon emissions, accounting for approximately 37-40 per cent of total emissions, with a substantial portion coming from the production of building materials like cement and steel and from the operation of buildings once completed. According to IFC, the green certification empowers emerging markets to scale up resource-efficient buildings in a fast, easy, and affordable way while aiming to reduce the environmental impact of buildings in direct energy and water consumption and the embodied carbon of construction materials. "While energy-efficient buildings can reduce energy bills by up to 30 per cent, they also bring with them additional benefits such as better financing rates, increased occupancy rates, and stronger brand equity. Green buildings promote resource efficiency and sustainability but also enhance life quality for occupants, something the built industry is increasingly recognising as a unique selling point," says Ms Macharia. With such accrued benefits, she says there is greater interest in sustainable construction and in retrofitting older buildings to make them environmentally more efficient, with such buildings being seen as premium properties with higher valuations and rental rates. Architectural Association of Kenya President George Ndege says for sustainable practices to become entrenched in the country, it would be helpful to provide comparative data from our peers across Africa. He says Kenya may be a distant second to South Africa, and it would be prudent to provide timelines that show how long it took Kenya to achieve this feat. Mr Ndege adds that those certifying buildings as sustainable should also clarify the types of buildings covered, as the majority of local building stock is residential and constructed informally, resulting in a predominance of "brown" buildings, or existing structures not built in a sustainable manner, which are expensive to manage since they use more resources such as water and electricity. Energy consumption Usually, retrofitting a "brown" building to green involves upgrading the older structure to make it more energy-efficient, environmentally friendly, and sustainable. This involves analysing the building's current energy consumption, insulation, heating, cooling, lighting, and structural integrity to identify areas for improvement. Solar panels, wind turbines, or other renewable energy solutions can be added to reduce reliance on fossil fuels, in addition to installing rainwater harvesting techniques, low-flow plumbing fixtures, and water-efficient landscaping to help lower water usage. Another key component of making buildings sustainable is establishing recycling and waste reduction strategies, such as reusing demolition materials or composting organic waste, thus making the building more eco-conscious. Features like green roofs and living walls contribute to cleaner air, better stormwater management, and urban cooling effects, enhancing the liveability of cities. "The concept of green building has yet to resonate with the wider public, partly due to the limited local expertise in applying these international tools," says Mr Ndege. Apart from the IFC EDGE-certifying tool, Kenya has also used the LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification rating system for sustainable buildings. LEED was developed by the US Green Building Council (USGBC) and provides a framework for designing, constructing, and operating environmentally responsible buildings. Local practitioners Kenya's architectural body is currently developing a new green building certification tool, the Safari Green Building Index, which Ndege says is "designed to demystify green building strategies for local practitioners" and will be suitable for all climatic zones in East Africa. When fully developed, the tool will apply to all new building works, additions to existing buildings, major retrofitting works to existing buildings and national heritage works. It will provide localised benchmarks and guidelines to address climate change and environmental degradation to help "reduce or eliminate the adverse impact of buildings on the environment and occupants." "This is a significant milestone, especially now that Kenya is embarking on the development of a decarbonisation roadmap," says Ndege of the initiative being led by the Green Building Performance Network (GBPN) with support from AAK and initiated by the State Department for Public Works. Mr Ndege says soon, Kenya will be able to empirically measure the impact of such certification milestones against the country's Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC) to greenhouse gas emissions. Globally, green building is rapidly gaining momentum as environmental concerns, resource efficiency, and long-term sustainability become top priorities. With the growing demand for energy-efficient spaces, reduced carbon footprints, and healthier indoor environments, property developers, businesses, and homeowners are shifting toward eco-friendly construction practices. Governments in different countries are also incentivising green building initiatives, recognising their role in mitigating climate change and improving urban resilience. In 2023, the State Department for Public Works formulated the Climate Change (Green and Resilient Buildings) Regulations to promote the construction of green buildings in Kenya. However, there is no record that the guidelines were operationalised. "The newly enacted Building Code has a section dealing with sustainable buildings. The counties also have similar guidelines. The question is whether there are compliance or enforcement procedures, not a lack of guidelines," says Mr Ndege. As technology advances and sustainable materials become more accessible, the future of construction is undoubtedly leaning toward a greener, smarter, and more sustainable built environment.

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