KCB Bank Drives Sustainable Energy At Ndima Kanini Academy

I was in Karatina. In the interior, but not far away from the main town. It was my first time in life to visit the place. That day, Harambee Stars were playing Madagascar at Kasarani Stadium, and somehow, the wise policemen and women had sealed off part of Thika Road. But somehow, we managed to hit Karatina town.

The final destination was Ndima Kanini Academy, one of the best-performing institutions in the region, with about 1,300 learners, and with about 700 of them being on a boarding basis. The place was calm, cool, and with a breeze from the mountain. But we didn’t dare touch the mountain, though.

KCB Bank had ferried me and other journalists to this institution to witness one of their mega projects involving green finance tailored to schools, not just in the region but across the country, too.

This was under the KCB’s Clean Energy Schools Project, one that targets over 90% of Kenyan schools that still rely on firewood for cooking, or the power grid to pump water or for lighting and heating.

And Ndima Kanini, the major project was a borehole that serves more than 1,300 students. The school procured solar panels from KCB Bank under the Clean Energy School Project, had them installed, and now powers the water, lights the school, and helps in cooking the meals.

“Through this project, KCB Bank has helped us to not only cut on power costs by tremendous margins, but also ensure that our learners have a continuous and uninterrupted flow of clean water. This has enabled them to focus more on their studies as well as saving on time had water not been here,” said Mr. Njogu Lincoln, the Director of the institution.

According to KCB Bank, and why they decided to come up with this project, deforestation remains a persistent threat to the environment in Kenya. A major driver is the country’s high demand for fuel, with over 75% of households relying on firewood and charcoal.

The lender says that the education sector is a significant contributor to deforestation in Kenya, with over 10 million trees cut annually to fuel school kitchens. More than 90% of schools rely on firewood as their primary source of cooking and heating fuel, consuming at least 1.3 million metric tons of wood each year with an estimated value of Ksh 20 billion.

This has led to a significant loss of tree cover and destruction of water catchment areas, leading to increased greenhouse gas emissions, contributing to climate change effects such as flooding, drought, and unpredictable weather patterns.

“Our project is not at Ndima Kanini alone. We are all over. Our mission is to ensure that eventually, all the learning institutions are brought into the fold and enjoy and benefit the same way Ndima Kanini is doing,” said KCB in a statement.

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