Business

Chamber boss calls for transition of small businesses to green economy

Friday, July 24th, 2020 00:00 | By
Richard Ngatia. PHOTO/COURTESY

Apollo Abraham

STRATEGY: Kenya National Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KNCCI) is mulling the adoption of a green economy mindset by small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to deepen sustainable production and consumption.

The move is meant to spur opportunities for suppliers of  “green consumers”, developers of environmentally safer materials and processes, and firms that invest in eco-efficiency.

Speaking during a review of the interim report of the Dasgupta Review on Economics of Biodiversity, the chamber president Richard Ngatia said the sector will work with national and county governments to achieve global environmental conservation.

“We are committed to work with all the stakeholders and institutions to support the private sector agenda to adopt Green Economy programmes with a lot of focus to the SMEs,” he said.

The forum was attended by academia, private sector players, development agencies and civil society groups.

Global review

The Dasgupta Review is an independent, global review on the Economics of Biodiversity led by Prof Sir Partha Dasgupta who is a Frank Ramsey Prof Emeritus, University of Cambridge.

Prof Dasgupta led the review focusing on the assessment of the economic benefits of biodiversity globally, evaluation of the economic costs and risks of biodiversity loss, identification of actions that will simultaneously enhance biodiversity and deliver economic prosperity.

Investments in green economy, among others, reduce downside risks of adverse events associated with climate change, energy shocks, water scarcity and loss of ecosystem services.

Ngatia said the interim report highlights the need for engagement and promotion of technical support and financing of SMEs to incorporate biodiversity protection and conservation practices in their operations and to also adopt practices that reduce the negative impact of their businesses.

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