Scaling Resource Efficiency and Cleaner Production (RECP) in the Nairobi Rivers Basin

The Kenya National Cleaner Production Centre (KNCPC) is leading this Nairobi-based project which is designed to pilot solutions for water pollution caused by the discharge of untreated/poorly treated industrial effluent by multiple industry types. The project falls under the umbrella of the Nairobi Rivers Basin Commission, launched by President William Ruto in February 2023, to reclaim the rivers of Nairobi as a spine to the city’s blue and green infrastructure for a better urban environment and quality of life.

From experience, KNCPC understands that manufacturers struggle to adopt progressive improvements and investments into cleaner infrastructure for a range of reasons – poor organisational capacity, lack of understanding of the most suitable technology to address their needs, and low understanding of the long-term commercial benefits. The challenge of limited information and understanding of the commercial business case is shared by the financial sector, with the result that financing is not readily available for required investments in Resource Efficiency and Cleaner Production (RECP).

The project kicked off with a scoping exercise to map the most urgent water pollution challenges and the priorities in the basin. Priority industries were invited to work alongside the project, specifically to receive support from KNCPC in the form of site evaluations, recommendations on RECP interventions and staff training on these practices. The KNCPC aims to work with up to 100 manufacturers for RECP training and audits. Sites are audited for specific infrastructure investments and an assessment is made on what type of financing solutions are suitable and what investment readiness interventions may be required to support this. The project partner, Fintech Frontiers, will be developing a case for the return on investment and facilitate engagement with financial partners. By bringing finance providers on board and providing specific training to investors on the business case for cleaner production investments, the project seeks to address a significant barrier to physical investments in pollution abatement. With better information on the water pollution situation in the Nairobi Rivers, the project will also bring policymakers into the discussion to address policy incentives and better regulatory control.

The broad scale work is paired with targeted wastewater treatment interventions at two pilot sites. These pilot sites will be used to build case studies and as demonstration sites that will illustrate environmental compliance benefits and the long-term financial benefits of circular water use and greater resource efficiency. The wastewater case studies will be used alongside the broader campaign to implement RECP practices amongst the heaviest polluting industries in the Nairobi Rivers Basin and to show the potential for large-scale environmental improvements in the water quality of the Nairobi Rivers.

Image: Nairobi river flowing through Kibera, Nairobi

Source: AP News, Khalil Senosi (link)