As the world congregates at the Sharm El-Sheikh resort town in Egypt next week for the 27th United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP27), the role and place of grassroots and rural women and youth in climate action should be highlighted.
Hustlers' role
The "hustlers" can become agents or champions of climate action. Already, the President has indicated that the youth who were previously employed in the Kazi Mtaani programme will be involved in tree planting.
Beyond tree planting, the boda boda riders and 'mama mboga' can provide an extensive and pervasive network of climate change educators. They can be literal carriers of climate change messages.
The Hustlers Fund, which will be launched in December, provides an opportunity for integration of climate actions into businesses that will be funded and, through it, everyday "hustles" of beneficiaries. Participating cooperative societies or groups can be avenues for educating members, raising their awareness on climate change and mobilising them to participate in initiatives such as tree planting. Designers of the Fund can consider including a requirement that projects that promote clean energy (such as buying electric boda bodas as opposed to diesel-powered ones) or climate-resilient agribusiness initiatives stand a better chance of getting funded. Climate financing must deliberately and aggressively target and involve the hustler youth and women.
Third, all county governments must pass climate change policies and laws and implement them urgently and fully by ensuring that their planning and budgeting frameworks such as the county integrated development plans (CIDPs), annual development plans and annual budgets integrate climate adaptation, mitigation and resilience building actions.
Institutions such as the Controller of Budget, Council of Governors, the County Assemblies Forum and regional economic blocs like the Frontier Counties Development Council (FCDC) and the North Rift Economic Bloc (NOREB) must be supported so that they can, in turn, help to build the capacities of county governments to effectively implement the climate change initiatives in a coherent and coordinated manner.
Finally, sector-wide approaches, which bring together government, civil society, private sector and development partners, to coordinate their climate actions need to be adopted. These actors cannot continue to operate in silos as they have done previously. We cannot afford to lose more time. The planet cannot afford it.
* Lawyers Lokaale and Kiptoo have an interest in Climate Change and Devolved Governance. They are immediate former Speakers of the County Assemblies of Turkana and Nandi respectively.