"Sustainable economic development meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs."

Source

Report of the World Commission on Enviroment and Development: Our Common Future.1987.

It’s all about Sustainable Economic Development

The concept of sustainable economic development emerged in the context of a growing awareness of an imminent ecological crisis: at the present level of economic activity, in the long term the human race consumes more natural resources than it produces. Already by now humanity has been undesirably affected in terms of social disparities in the face of scarce resources.

The above definition builds upon this awareness: The present generation has to use its natural resources on a sustainable basis to allow future generations to have equal opportunities.

To be sustainable, development must thus be economically sustainable or efficient, socially desirable or inclusive and ecologically prudent or balanced.

Economic
Dimension

The ever-increasing economic globalisation has put forth a community of nations which is highly interdependent. A more efficient and equitable world economy can thus only be realised as a common effort of the international community engaging in a continuous and constructive dialogue on allocation and utilisation of global resources.

Ecological
Dimension

In the early 1970s a third dimension was added as a prerequisite for sustainable economic development: to be truly sustainable, development must also be ecologically balanced, guarding the long-term value of the environment which sustains life on the planet.

Political
Dimension

Sustainable development poses a challenge for policy makers and implementers: surely a clear policy and legal framework aswell as concrete financing and monitoring efforts are needed. This notwithstanding, sustainable development cannot be achieved without a positive political will, and strong leadership for its implementation.

Acknowledging the need for common action, the international community has undertaken considerable efforts to forward the concept of sustainable economic development during the last decades. Several international treaties have passed declarations and bound the participating countries to their implementation. Kenya, too has been working hard on progressing towards a more sustainable development. Still, there is a long way to go for the community of nations to achieve a veritable sustainable use of its resources and it is questionable if sustainable economic development can ever be fully achieved.

  • 1992

    flags of UN countries

    The UN Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED) was a milestone in the global acknowledgment of sustainable economic development. In a combined effort the 170 participating countries committed to the Declaration of Rio as well as the framework Agenda 21.

    The Declaration of Rio contained fundamental principles on which nations can base their future decisions and policies, considering the environmental implications of socio-economic development around the wider topics:

    • Systematic scrutiny of patterns of production
    • Alternative sources of energy
    • New reliance on public transportation systems
    • The growing usage and limited supply of water

    Agenda 21 recognises that human beings are at the center of concerns for sustainable development and are, therefore, entitled to a healthy and productive life in harmony with nature.

  • 1999

    The Environmental Management and Co-ordination Act No. 8 of 1999 (EMCA) provides an institutional framework and procedures for management of the environment, including provisions for conflict-resolution in Kenya.

    The Act is intended to ensure that human activities do not compromise the capacity of the resource base to meet the needs of the present generation as well as those of future generations.

    Acacia Tree in front of Kilimanjaro

  • 1999

    “Every person in Kenya is entitled to a clean and healthy environment and has the duty to safeguard and enhance the environment.”

    Source

    Government of Kenya, Environmental Management and Coordination Act No. 8 of 1999, Section 3

  • 1999

    The United Nations’ Global Compact is a call to companies and organisations to align their strategies and operations with the declared universal principles on human rights, labour, environment and anti-corruption, and take actions that advance societal- goals.

    The Global Impact intends to organise a global movement of not only sustainable companies but also various stakeholders in order to create a world that is acceptable to all.

    White adult hand holding black children's hand

  • 2000

    At the beginning of the new millennium, world leaders gathered at the United Nations to shape a broad vision to fight poverty in its many dimensions. That vision, which was transformed into eight Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), served as the overarching development framework for 189 countries in the world (including Kenya) from 2000-2015.

    Teacher in the Kenyan countryside teaching pastoralists' children

  • Millenium Development Goals

    1.

    eradicate extreme poverty and hunger

    2.

    achieve universal primary education

    3.

    promote gender equality and empower women

    4.

    reduce child mortality

    5.

    improve maternal health

    6.

    combat HIV/AIDS, malaria, and other diseases

    7.

    ensure environmental sustainability

    8.

    develop a global partnership for development

  • 2001

    Kenya launched its Poverty Reduction and Strategy Paper (PRSP) as a short-term policy based on the UN MDGs with the goal of halving poverty by 2015.

    Kenyan street child thrusting out its hand

  • 2002

    The German National Sustainable Development Strategy aims at economically efficient, socially balanced and environmentally sustainable development and serves as the key framework for promoting sustainable development domestically since 2002.

    windmills on German coastline

  • 2003

    Kenyan woman harvesting coffee

    As a means of eradicating poverty and achieving food security until 2007 the Kenyan Government adopted an Economic Recovery Strategy for Wealth and Employment Creation (ERS).

    This strategy identified agriculture as the leading productive sector for economic recovery and defined four pillars to pull economy out of recession by strategic policy interventions:

    • Macro-economic stability
    • Strengthening institutional governace
    • Rehabilitation and expansion of physical infrustucture
    • Investment in the human capital of the poor

  • 2007

    Kenya Vision 2030 aspired to help the country meet the MDGs by 2015. Vision 2030 is implemented in successive five-year Medium Term Plans (MTPs) and is driven by three pillars: economic, social (including environmental aspects), and political.

    Lion walking through a Kenyan landscape

  • 2007

    “Create a globally competitive and prosperous country with a high quality of life by 2030 […and transform Kenya into] a newly-industrialising, middle-income country providing a high quality of life to all its citizens in a clean and secure environment.”

    Source

    Kenya Vision 2030 “A Globally Competitive and Prosperous Kenya” October 2007

  • 2008

    The Business Call to Action (BCtA) was launched as a unique multilateral alliance along major donor governments and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). BCtA fosters corporations and small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to contribute to the achievement of the SDGs.

    Kenyan business man in Kibera slum

  • 2010

    Sustainable Development got deeply anchored into the 2010 Constitution of Kenya.

    Kenyan Parliament building with Timetower

  • 2010

    “The national values and principles of governance include […] sustainable development.”

    Source

    The Constitution of Kenya, Article 10(2) (d)

  • 2015

    As the MDG period was about to end, a post-2015 development agenda was adopted by UN Member States at the UN Sustainable Development Summit whose main aim was to adopt an agenda to end poverty by 2030 and pursue a sustainable future.

    UN building in New York

Where is Kenya now?

Kenya has been on the forefront towards the pursuit of various forms of sustainable development since 1963. The pillars of sustainable development are embedded in the fundamental rights guaranteed by the Constitution of Kenya 2010, which lays down the framework for social justice in binding every person and state organ to the principle of sustainable development.

Still, the rigorous quest to achieve SDG success could be considered just a starting point for any actual effort towards sustainability. In essence, the country is still suffering from an ever-growing population, climate change, global warming and high unemployment making sustainable development ever the more necessary.

Bills of Kenyan Currency

Economic
Dimension

Kenyan hands receive water

Ecological
Dimension

Kenyan State House with flags

Political
Dimension

Economic Dimension

There is widespread consensus that Kenya’s economy is under stress. Insecurity due to acts of terrorism, high inflation, rising foreign debt, unchecked resource depletion and ecosystem degradation all of which are exacerbated by the omnipresent rampant corruption rattle the country’s stability creating a challenging and ambiguous environment for businesses to invest.

147

businesses and organisations in Kenya have signed onto the Global Compact to manifest their commitment to sustainable development

Even when an individual or company has the proclivity to be ethical, the prevailing atmosphere of corruption shrouds all good intentions and stymies Kenya’s competitiveness. Demands for bribes by public officials are all too common, even for basic services, leading to increased business costs. Widespread tax evasion and fraud in public procurement is rampant.

9th

largest economy in Africa

In 2014, after a recalculation of its GDP using updated statistics which found it 25 percent larger than previously thought, Kenya became the ninth-largest economy in Africa and classified it as a middle-income country.

5.8%

Annual GDP growth rate [2016]

In Vision 2030, Kenya aimed at achieving a 10 percent annual growth in GDP. Looking at the current numbers Kenya still has a considerable way to go to achieve its goal.

In this light it is hopeful, that the Third MTP (2018-2022) of Vision 2030 will prescribe more realistic strategies to increase domestic savings and investment and adopt a new framework for financing development and implementation of the SDGs which relies on an interdependent mix of financial resources, technology and capacity building initiatives and other innovative means of implementation.

In order to enhance the business environment, the country could engage in reducing the time and red tape for compliance with administrative requirements, ridding bribery, creating more incentives for greater investment to start or expand business and create jobs.

Source

World Bank, http://data.worldbank.org/indicator/NY.GDP.MKTP.KD.ZG?locations=KE

Political Dimension

“The problem is not really in our laws. We have pretty good laws and the Constitution is definitely forward thinking. The problem lies in the implementation and enforcement of our policies and laws. And we do not have the political will to enforce them.”

Source

Anonymous Interview Partner, Preliminary Baseline Study on the Concept of Sustainable Economic Development in Kenya.

Political Dimension

The challenge in achieving the SDGs lies in fulfilling the potentials necessary for its achievement. At both the national and local levels, there is an apparent dearth of knowledge and paucity of will power to implement SDGs.

Local political administrations look to the national stage for leadership but often none is forthcoming because of misunderstanding on strategies for implementation and lack of sufficient funding for execution. It is also clear that there is a lack of coordination of policies and approaches amongst stakeholders which leads to misunderstanding in realisation of the SDGs. While the status quo system of corruption is to blame for many problems in the country, the lack of leadership is the real problem for Kenya to be on a genuine path towards more sustainable development.

The concept of sustainable economic development is still in its nascent stage of being fully understood and embraced in Kenya.

Particularly this applies to government officials and civil servants who implement governmental policies and programmes. Many of the experts we spoke with concluded that Kenya’s commitment to bona-fide sustainable economic development is merely lip service to perhaps appease multi- and bi-lateral donors in order to keep the investments flowing into the country.

It is clear to most objective observers that while the GoK is making strides towards creating the structures for overseeing the implementation of the SDGs, more leadership on true, integrated sustainable economic development is necessary from the highest echelons of government—perhaps starting with more robust compliance and enforcement of environmental laws and regulations.

Ecological Dimension

“Every person in Kenya is entitled to a clean and healthy environment and has the duty to safeguard and enhance the environment.”

Source

Gok Road Map to implementation of SDGs, 2016

Ecological Dimension

The enactment of the Environmental Management and Coordination Act (EMCA) in 1999, harmonising about 77 sectoral statutes, was a landmark moment for the preservation of the environment in Kenya. The Act makes provision for the prosecution of environmental offenders, thereby securing better prospects for the conservation of the environment, even within the context of economic development.

Ecological Footprint [2013]

kenya

0.6

global
hectares per capita
[gha]

germany

3.22

global
hectares per capita
[gha]

Source

Human Development Report 2015, United Nations Development Programme

11.11%

Proportion of important sites for terrestrial biodiversity that are covered by protected areas [2016]

78.53%

[2012]

The EMCA fostered a well-arranged body of authorities to ensure the implementation of all environment-related policies in Kenya: The National Environment Management Authority (NEMA) along with the Kenyan Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources are assigned to ensure a clean, healthy safe and sustainably managed environment. As binding frameworks for all government policies the National Environmental Policy (NEP) aswell as the Environmental Programme Support (EPS) were established in support of improved livelihoods in Kenya. Additionally, in order to sensitise the wide public for environmental issues, the National Environmental Education and Awareness Initiative was forwarded to enhance voluntary initiatives and participation in environmental conservation activities by every Kenyan through education and awareness campaigns

Source

http://kenya.opendataforafrica.org

Social Dimension

“No one will be left behind’ in the economic and social prosperity of the country.”

Source

GoK Road Map to Implementation of SDGs. 2016

Social Dimension

As stated in the Vision 2030, Kenya intends to create a globally competitive and adaptive human resource base to meet the requirements of a rapidly industrialising economy through life-long training and education. Acknowledging that no society can gain the social cohesion predicted by Vision 2030 if significant sections of it live in abject poverty, special attention shall be given to investment in the arid and semi-arid districts, communities with high incidence of poverty, unemployed youth, women, and all vulnerable groups.

0.445

gini
coefficient
Kenya

The Gini coefficient is a commonly used measure that varies between ‘0’ reflecting complete equality and ‘1’ indicating complete inequality. The Gini coefficient is based on the Lorenz curve, which compares the distribution of incomes across the entire population of an area. It is a useful measure because it incorporates all of the information available from a particular area.

33.60%

proportion of population below the international poverty line of us$ 1.90 per day [2005]

Number of urban population living in slums, informal settlements or inadequate housing

6.426.560

56%

[2014]

Source

http://kenya.opendataforafrica.org

Social Dimension

Despite Kenya’s classification as a middle-income country, and despite the tremendous amount of economic progress Kenya has demonstrated over the last decade and a half, there are still very significant pockets of poverty that are unrelieved, copious amounts of inequality, a lack of social inclusion, and major gaps between the rich and the poor.

proportion of population using improved drinking water sources

56.84%

rural [2015]

81.65%

urban [2015]

30.11%

Proportion of population using improved sanitation facilities [2005]

Proportion of population with access to electricity [2005]

23%

Vision 2030 aspires for a country firmly interconnected through a network of roads, railways, ports, airports, and water ways, and telecommunications. It should provide water and modern sanitation facilities to her people.

Source

http://kenya.opendataforafrica.org

Where is Kenya heading to?

With all of the activities and talk around the SDGs in Kenya, one could easily but perhaps wrongly conclude that Kenya is on the ‘right’ track. But incremental progress towards meeting approximately half of the SDG indicators perhaps should not be considered advancement towards a greater pathway to sustainability. And the emphasis on making progress towards the SDG indicators beckons the question of whether Kenya will attain a more sustainable economic development pathway even if the ambitious SDG targets are indeed met by 2030.

Kenya has a lot of problems and is working on them. But it will take a more concerted effort, by the government (national and county governments inclusive), donors, financiers, NGOs, and the people themselves, to work towards balancing economic interests with societal benefits and securities, and environmental safeguards.

Ultimately, Kenya can change from the 'business as usual' path it is on now, to the sustainable development trajectory, if it so desires. To do so, champions must be mobilised in all sectors of the economy and society to actively steer the sustainable development agenda and ensure sustained commitment by all stakeholders, especially the national government and the 47 county governments.

Kenyan Massai dancing their tradition songs

Recommendations for Kenya

1.

All opportunities should be leveraged to establish a broader dialogue and sensitise stakeholders on the tenets and benefits of sustainable economic development at future governmental, academic, civil society or other non-governmental meetings and forums on economic growth and sustainable development. The dialogue and debate must go beyond just the implementation of the SDGs which heretofore have been the focus. There must also be concerted efforts to include non-governmental actors in the sustainable development debates and efforts. Academia, private and corporate foundations and both the mainstream media and blogosphere should be targets for greater inclusion.

2.

At the operational levels of government, there is not yet sufficient awareness of the benefits which accrue from the pursuit of sustainable economic development, impeding the implementation of the inter-related elements of sustainable economic development. To bridge this gap, the government needs to enhance awareness and media campaigns on sustainable development ideals and benefits so as to enlist support within its cadres of policy makers and civil servants.

3.

Both the national and county governments need to do a better job of soliciting and stimulating public participation in development planning processes. It is the Constitutional right of Kenyans to live in a clean and healthy environment, and for the public to be involved in problem-solving and decision-making. Subsequently, the public’s concerns, needs, and values should be incorporated into decision-making. Similarly, private sector developers should also more robustly engage affected communities in their projects as core business practice as to ensure shared value for companies and local stakeholders.

4.

There is a need to comprehensively implement and/or enforce existing policies and regulations around crucial environmental protection measures so as to guard against ecological and human health degradation.

5.

To create a stable and secure economy, the government should make better use of its resources so as to generate sufficient funding for social and environmental initiatives. Such initiatives are often forgotten and may lower the economic progress of the country. Further, the government should intensify job creation plans, provide ‘easy to access’ loans and gender-sensitive enterprises that permit equitable economic and social advancement. In this way, the government will eliminate tendencies to certain environmental and socially destructive habits and activities.

6.

To assess and ensure certain progress, the government should put in place more stringent and dynamic monitoring and evaluation processes and procedures to assess the progress of its efforts on all segments of the population and all facets of the economy.

7.

Finally, comparative studies are needed to understand how other developing countries have successfully—or unsuccessfully—addressed similar challenges in implementing sustainable economic development activities to provide lessons learned.

United Nation Development Programme

APHRC

Ministry of Environment

UNEP

UNEP

United Nation Human Settlements Programme

NEMA

African Biodiversity Network

AWO

KNBS

NCPD

COG

IIN

CYNESA

CEJD

CNAF

ELCI

Sustainable Square

Panafrican Climate Justice Alliance

NYGGCS

MTIHU

SDHU

Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung (KAS) is a German political organisation working in over 70 countries worldwide towards making a contribution to the promotion of democracy, the rule of law, and social ecological market economy. The KAS is a political foundation, associated with the German party “Christian Democratic Union of Germany” (CDU). As co-founder of the party and the first Chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany, Konrad Adenauer (1876-1967) united Christian-social, conservative, and liberal traditions. His name is associated with the democratic reconstruction of Germany, the firm alignment of foreign policy with the trans-Atlantic community of values and the vision of a unified Europe, as well as an orientation towards social market economy.

About
Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung

The utmost priority of Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung in Kenya is the promotion and consolidation of democracy with the implementation of the new constitution being crucial for political development and the stabilisation of democracy. Freedom, justice, and solidarity are the basic principles underlying the work of the Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung (KAS) in Kenya.

This process demands that the citizens of Kenya as well as the civil society, political parties and other stakeholders are involved in the implementation process. It is necessary that all state actors have profound knowledge of the provisions made in the 2010 constitution, and engage the public closely in its implementation process. To achieve this goal, the Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung is engaging all the relevant stakeholders in a number of counties.

On the national and county level, Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung is working with political and economic actors, as for example with the National Chamber of Commerce, the Kenyan Land Alliance and political parties representing the democratic center, dealing with questions of sustainable economic development and the implementation process of devolution.

Besides the consolidation of democracy, and empowering civil society, Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung focuses on the promotion of social and ecologic market economy in Kenya. Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung engages national employers’ associations, drawing their attention to the principal guidelines of social and ecologic market economy and sustainable management and its benefits for employers, employees, and the country’s economic performance. At the same time, Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung promotes fair management in the mining of raw materials. Since 2015, Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung is also active in achieving crisis prevention through the promotion of good governance in the field of food security.

Contact

Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung

Foreign Office Kenya

1 Thigiri Hilltop

Off Thigiri Ridge Road

P.O.Box 66471

Nairobi 00800/Kenya

Tel: +254 20 2610021; +254 20 2610022

Fax +254 20 2610023

info.nairobi@kas.de