Kenya's Senate Committee on Delegated Legislation met with Environment Cabinet Secretary Dr. Deborah Barasa in Mombasa to review seven proposed environmental frameworks. The regulations cover the Climate Change Act, the Environmental Management and Coordination Act, and the Forest Conservation and Management Act, including new rules for carbon trading, a national carbon registry, wetlands, and forest concessions. The Ministry says the measures aim to improve transparency and multi-stakeholder participation across forest, wetland, and carbon markets. Senators raised concerns about county autonomy, asking that local governments remain central to implementation. They also pushed for stronger oversight of the National Carbon Registry, specifically the power to suspend project accounts to protect integrity. Lawmakers want clearer language in the draft, replacing permissive terms like 'may' with mandatory 'shall' in Regulation 12(4), and called for broader public consultation before the rules are gazetted. The outcome matters for anyone tracking carbon market development in Africa. Kenya is positioning itself as a player in voluntary and compliance carbon trading, and these regulations will shape how projects are registered, verified, and monitored. The debate over county versus national authority is also a reminder that implementation, not just drafting, will decide whether these frameworks work on the ground.
