The 1st National Round Table Forum on “Energy accessibility & efficiency in Kenya” was held on May 3^rd at the Nairobi Campus of Moi University in the framework of the ENRICH & SUCCEED Network ACP S&T and ACP Edulink projects.

The event was jointly organized by Moi University, African Virtual University and the Ministry of Education, Science & Technology, Kenya, with the support of the University of Alicante, coordinator of the ENRICH and SUCCEED Network Projects.

The aim of the Round Table was to bring together the main stakeholders in the field of energy in Kenya (including higher management and researchers from Higher Education Institutions, research & project managers, policy makers, managers from energy industries, experts) to exchange ideas and discuss energy issues at a national level in Kenya.

The National Round Table brought together several relevant stakeholders in the field of Energy in Kenya, including representatives from African Virtual University, Moi University, Directorate of Research Management & Development of the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology, Energy Regulatory Commission, Technical University of Kenya, Consumer Trends Ltd., Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology and National Commission for Science, Technology and Innovation. These were joined by non-Kenyan partners from the ENRICH and SUCCEED Network projects: University of Alicante, Glasgow Caledonian University, Mzumbe University, Makerere University, Uganda National Council for Science and Technology, University of Rwanda and Université du Burundi.

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Participants in the Roundtable, involving government, private businesses and higher education, provided a good diagnosis of the Energy Sector in Kenya. Discussions on connectivity, access to rural areas, the energy mix or the relation between energy and the economic growth were considered in the presentations and discussions.

The Round Table also showed that there is currently little interaction between the higher education system, the private sector and the government. Although there is a vision on the importance of having a fluid relationship between those actors, there is almost no implementation at this time. This can be overcome by promoting more dialogue between these sectors, with universities playing a key role to bring relevant stakeholders together and providing the necessary human capital and infrastructure the others may lack to improve the Energy Sector in Kenya.

The Agenda is available below, and the Report of the 1^st Kenya National Round Table is available to download from our Resources page.