Traditional biomass fuels such as firewood and charcoal remain the primary cooking fuels for almost 70% of Kenyans. However, things are changing in 2026. The government’s targets, significant international investment, and the ingenuity of local innovators and manufacturers are making clean cooking a reality, not a far-fetched dream, for the country.
The Human Cost of Traditional Cooking
The effects of smoke on millions of Kenyan families gathering around cooking fires in their homes extend beyond the kitchen. According to the Kenya National Cooking Transition Strategy (KNCTS), household air pollution in Kenya causes about 22,283 deaths every year. This is not just a health issue; it is a generational issue.
Women and girls carry the heaviest burden. Studies indicate that using clean cooking technologies would save about 790 hours per household per year. That is time currently spent collecting firewood and tending smoky fires instead of generating income, learning, or resting. Researchers in neighboring Tanzania found that an extra hour of firewood collection reduced school attendance by 25 minutes a week, resulting in a 20% reduction in attainment 20 years later.
However, “the reliance on biomass continues to have far-reaching implications for public health, environmental sustainability and climate resilience,” warns Kenya’s National Council for Nomadic Education (NCNE) CEO Harun Yussuf.
Kenya’s Bold National Strategy
By 2028, Kenya is targeting universal access to clean cooking, two years ahead of the SDG 7.2 target. This is a national priority under the Kenya National Cooking Transition Strategy (KNCTS), which sets ambitious targets: 3% of households using wood stoves, 2% using charcoal, 50% using LPG, and 30% using bioethanol. The total cost of achieving universal access in Kenya is estimated at KSh 133 billion, with KSh 56.5 billion allocated to households and KSh 76.7 billion to institutions such as schools, hospitals, and prisons.
Institutional Transformation: Schools, Prisons, and Public Facilities
In Kenya, some of the most dramatic changes are happening in public institutions. Over 97,000 educational institutions, more than 13,000 health care facilities, and more than 130 correctional facilities prepare meals daily; 90% or more still rely on biomass.
Schools Leading the Change
The National School Meals Program (NSMP), which reaches 2.6 million learners, especially in the Arid and Semi-Arid Lands (ASALs), is undergoing a complete transformation. The government has introduced the Institutional Clean Cooking for Sustainable and Universal Climate-Smart School Meals Project, which is introducing clean cooking technologies in 11 ASAL schools and constructing kitchens in thirteen additional schools.
The results are already promising. Pilots have reported significant reductions in fuel consumption, improved kitchen efficiency, healthier workplaces, and reduced operational costs. Kenya is also building its first institutional centralized kitchen in Eldoret City, which will serve over 30,000 learners.
Correctional Facilities Making the Switch
The State Department for Correctional Services aims to fully switch from wood fuel to clean energy within one year. Correctional facilities currently consume 64,000 metric tonnes of wood fuel, which imposes significant financial, environmental, and health costs. The initiative, which includes LPG, biogas, solar-powered stoves, and steam technologies, among others, follows a successful pilot conducted at Lang’ata Women’s Maximum-Security Prison.
County-Level Momentum
National adoption of clean cooking is 24%, but adoption rates vary significantly across counties. The Accelerating County Cooking Transitions (A2CT) project, funded by SNV Netherlands Development Organization, has been introduced in Kakamega County, where a large proportion of the population lives in rural areas, contributing to an adoption rate of only 9%.
Meanwhile, Makueni County inked a five-year agreement with CLASP, with the initiative targeting more than 4,500 people across 63 vocational training centers. Governor Mutula Kilonzo Jr. said that the county is committed: “We know what’s possible when the right partners show up. This is about scaling this partnership, lowering fuel costs in our institutions, and creating jobs for young people in the clean energy sector.”
The Investment Case
Clean cooking is emerging as an increasingly attractive, investable opportunity rather than simply a development need. The Kenya Institutional Clean Cooking Sector Pack highlights an investment opportunity to reach 100,000 institutions serving 12.6 million people by investing KSh 72 billion.
The math is compelling. Annual social and private benefits from sustained use of clean cooking technologies would exceed US$240 million, including health benefits, time savings, carbon reduction, and other benefits. In addition to the savings, the shift would prevent 26,588 deaths and avert 622,782 disability-adjusted life years (DALYs). To date, $750 million has been disbursed from $2.2 billion in pledges for clean cooking projects from 2024 to 2030. Kenya has received the largest share of the pledges, accounting for 19% of overall spending. In July 2026, Kenya was among the first countries to join the newly formed Clean Cooking Alliance (CCA) under the IEA, making a more significant contribution to the sector.
Local Innovation and Job Creation
A clean cooking revolution is not merely a technology import; it also means developing manufacturing capacity and creating jobs in the country. Local cookstove production has evolved through the project “Promotion of Climate Friendly Cooking: Kenya and Senegal,” funded by the Green Climate Fund.
During the project period (2020–2025), more than 4.7 million improved cookstoves (ICS) were produced and sold. It created 60 business-class producers and 146 intermediate professional producers. This program alone created 3,466 full-time employment opportunities in 2025.
Artisanal stove producers in Murang’a County, who used to produce 50 stoves a month, have become professional producers employing six staff and producing 300 stoves a month. In Tharaka-Nithi County, Bruce Kimanthi increased production from 2,000 ceramic liners per month to 5,000, thanks to supply chain management training.
Environmental Impact
The environmental advantages are just as significant. So far, the GCF project has saved more than 5.7 million tons of CO₂. Transitioning to clean cooking in Kenya at 100% adoption is expected to reduce more than 7 million tons of CO₂ equivalent in basic climate-forcing pollutants.
This directly supports Kenya’s National Tree Growing and Restoration Campaign, which aims to plant 15 billion trees by 2032. Clean cooking helps reduce pressure on Kenya’s forests and mitigate the climate crisis by reducing wood fuel use.
Challenges Remain
While progress has been strong, challenges remain. An estimated 850,000 Africans die prematurely each year due to the use of unsafe cooking methods – four out of five Africans still cook with unsafe methods. The government recognizes that “without a faster pace of investment and implementation, Kenya, like many other African countries, will not reach universal access to clean cooking by 2030.”
One of the biggest challenges remains affordability. The approach aims to cover fuel and stove subsidies through carbon credits generated by the continued use of clean technologies. The government’s intention to put 10 million homes on subsidized LPG is a significant commitment, but implementation remains a major challenge, including limited county-level resources.
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