US billionnairre Jeff Bezos selects Kenya among beneficiaries of Ksh3.3 billion (USD 22.8 million) donation
Kenya to be part of Jeff Bezos climate donation (Ksh3.3 billion (USD 22.8 million) to restore degraded lands in Rift Valley
Kenya to be part of Jeff Bezos climate donation (Ksh3.3 billion (USD 22.8 million) to restore degraded lands in Rift Valley.
Kenya’s Rift Valley will receive Ksh3.3 billion (USD 22.8 million) funds from the Bezos Earth Fund to help restore 600,000 hectares of land that have been destroyed by climate change.
In a disclosure on Tuesday, Bezos Earth Fund President and CEO Andrew Steer said that the funds will benefit the Rift Valley in Kenya and Lake Kivu and the Rusizi River Basin, on the border of DRC, Rwanda, and Burundi.
“Africa is home to the world’s largest restoration opportunity and is a critical player in the global move against climate change, nature loss and poverty,” Steer stated.
Billionaire Jeff Bezos founded the Bezos Earth Fund to mitigate climate change and protect nature.
Steer while addressing at the Africa Climate Summit highlighted that the funding will be used for carbon sequestration (storing carbon in a carbon pool), biodiversity, and human welfare .
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In Rift Valley, the funds will enable the restoration of 600,000 hectares of degraded land, as forests and woodlands are considered one of the best forms of natural carbon sequestration. Deforestation, on the other hand, poses the biggest threat to this natural process, as does construction or intensive agriculture.
CEO Andrew Steer also emphasised the funds will be vital in empowering the vulnerable people in society and transforming their landscapes and livelihoods.
“With these grants, we are proud to support the next generation of African institutions that are at the heart of the continent’s restoration movement and begin the vital work of leveraging philanthropy into private investment in restoration,” the CEO remarked.
Wanjira Mathai, the Earth Fund’s advisor for Africa and Managing Director at the World Resource Institute, explained that scaling restoration across Africa would be impossible without local leadership, wisdom, and passion.
“Africa is home to some of our planet’s greatest restoration successes, and this funding will support locally-led restoration to re-green our beautiful African continent,” she added.
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