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Rachel Ruto: Clean cooking key to health and safety for Kenyan families
26th August, 2025 07:41 PM
First Lady Rachel Ruto has underscored the importance of clean cooking solutions in promoting health, dignity, and economic opportunities for Kenyan families.
Speaking in Kilifi County during the commemoration of Clean Cooking Week 2025 on Tuesday, August 26, 2025, the First Lady said access to clean cooking is not just about convenience but about transforming the daily lives of millions of households.
“Clean cooking is about dignity and safety in the daily lives of every Kenyan family. It means a mother is no longer forced to cook in a smoky kitchen that harms her health; a child is able to study in the evening without inhaling dangerous fumes, and families save time and resources, freeing women and youth to pursue education and entrepreneurial opportunities,” she said.
Furthermore, she reaffirmed the government’s ambition of ensuring universal access to clean cooking by 2028, adding that this goal requires collective action from all stakeholders.
She hailed the private sector and development partners for their role in driving innovation and expanding access to clean cooking technologies.
Additionally, she assured that the government remains committed to providing an enabling policy environment that will sustain the momentum toward this target.
“By working together, we can empower families, protect our environment, and open new pathways for women and youth to thrive,” she noted.
The Clean Cooking Week 2025 celebrations brought together government agencies, private sector actors, and community groups to reflect on progress made in scaling up clean cooking initiatives and to chart new strategies for inclusive adoption across the country.
BURN’s deal
This comes a few months after BURN secured a Ksh645.8 million investment from the EU-funded Electrification Financing Initiative (ElectriFI) to expand electric cooking solutions across Kenya.
The funding, managed by EDFI Management Company, will enable over 100,000 Kenyan households to transition to clean cooking technology.
“Kenya’s electricity grid is over 90% renewable, yet more than 15 million households still cook with polluting fuels. This investment helps close that gap,” said Peter Scott, Founder and CEO of BURN, on May 17, 2025.
“With over 40,000 ECOA induction cookers already in homes across East and West Africa, we’re proving that electric cooking, designed and built in Africa, can be the future of clean, affordable energy access at scale.”
