While Kenya's banking sector is increasingly investing in climate finance, with institutions like KCB Group, Standard Chartered Kenya, and Equity Bank reporting significant green loan growth, the vast majority of these funds are inaccessible to Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) and Jua Kali artisans. This disparity leaves a critical gap in supporting the backbone of Kenya's economy in climate mitigation and adaptation efforts.

• Only about 3% of SMEs in Kenya currently qualify for green financing products.
• KCB Group disbursed Sh53.2 billion in green loans in 2024, representing about 21.32% of its total loan book.
• The World Bank committed approximately Sh5.55 billion to a green investment fund for Kenyan SMEs in early 2026, channeled through the Kenya Development Corporation’s Green Investment Fund.
• The Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) launched the Kenya Green Finance Taxonomy (KGFT) and a Climate Risk Disclosure Framework in April 2025 to standardize green investments.

Unga Farm Care EA has installed a new biomass boiler at its manufacturing plant in Nairobi, Kenya, in collaboration with Lean Energy Solutions. This strategic move aims to significantly reduce the company's energy costs and lessen its dependence on diesel.

• The switch to biomass is projected to save Unga Farm Care EA approximately $1 million (Sh129 million) annually by reducing steam generation costs by about 45 percent.
• The project will eliminate the use of roughly 1.08 million litres of diesel per year, providing financial stability against foreign exchange volatility and global fuel price fluctuations.
• Beyond cost savings, the biomass system is expected to cut approximately 4,800 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions annually and create an estimated 50,000 man-days of employment across the biomass value chain.

Kenya's much-touted green finance boom is primarily benefiting commercially viable infrastructure projects and large corporations, rather than directly addressing the climate vulnerabilities of its most exposed communities. While billions of shillings are being channeled into "green" initiatives, critics argue capital is concentrating where it's easiest to invest, leaving socially urgent climate challenges underfunded.

• KCB Group disbursed KES 53.2 billion in green loans, growing its green portfolio to 21.32 percent last year, reinforced by a $150 million (Sh19.3 billion) financing package from the African Development Bank Group.
• Safaricom's green bond issuance was oversubscribed, attracting Sh41.4 billion in applications, with proceeds earmarked for solar-powered network sites and energy-efficient infrastructure.
• Equity Group focuses on embedding environmental and social risk assessment in its lending, particularly for climate-sensitive agriculture and SME sectors.
• Britam provided Sh15 million in claims to 300 vulnerable households in Tana River County and covered over 2,800 pastoralists and 7,500 smallholder farmers through index-based insurance products.
• The article highlights a significant "accountability gap," noting that green lending frameworks often track allocation but not consistently measure environmental outcomes in standardized, comparable terms.