Providing for Justice in Kenya’s Renewable Energy Benefit-sharing Model
A baseline assessment of the renewable energy sector, and consultations with affected communities, conducted by Natural Justice in 2025/2026, identified recurring governance challenges in renewable energy development in Kenya.
Based on this, Natural Justice set out to develop a framework that identifies legal, policy and implementation gaps in community participation and benefit-sharing, and proposes practical guidance for embedding justice, accountability and community rights in renewable energy and green hydrogen development.
The framework is based on human rights and the principles of energy justice – procedural, distributive, and recognition justice. Procedural justice requires meaningful and inclusive participation in decision-making processes. Distributive justice seeks to ensure that the benefits and burdens associated with energy projects are shared fairly. Recognition justice emphasises the protection of rights, identities and livelihoods, particularly for communities dependent on land and natural resources.
In response to the challenges identified in the baseline assessment, the framework proposes five guiding principles for a just energy transition in Kenya. These are:
- Meaningful and inclusive participation throughout the project lifecycle;
- Equitable and structured benefit-sharing mechanisms;
- Transparency, access to information and accountability;
- Recognition and protection of community land rights and natural resource governance; and
- Local economic development and livelihood protection.
These principles should guide the planning, approval, implementation, monitoring and decommissioning of renewable energy projects.
To address the challenges and gaps in community benefits, the framework analyses the current models that exist, including community benefit-sharing, Community Development Agreements, royalties and public-private partnerships. The framework also looks at various case studies of renewable energy projects, providing an overview of the challenges experienced by communities in these real-world examples.
DRAFT one is currently available.
The framework recommends: Early and meaningful participation of affected communities, legally binding benefit-sharing arrangements, improved access to energy and, where relevant, water services for host communities, enhanced community awareness and legal literacy, strengthened Grievance Redress Mechanisms, stronger safeguards for land rights and Free, Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC), improved institutional coordination and preparing governance frameworks for emerging sectors such as green hydrogen. It further proposes the establishment of community-led just transition forums and energy protocols to facilitate early engagement between communities, government and project developers, community priority-setting and accountability.
