Ruto cites his science knowledge as he defends Kenya’s climate crisis response
By Steve Ireri, July 8, 2025President William Ruto has made a bold assertion that he is a scientist, a claim he says grants him greater credibility and authority to speak on the climate change crisis, both in Kenya and globally.
Speaking on Tuesday, July 8, 2025, during the groundbreaking of the global centre on adaptation headquarters in Nairobi, Ruto said, unlike other world leaders who admit to not having scientific backgrounds, his own qualifications place him in a stronger position to understand and articulate the real and present dangers of climate change.
“It is our responsibility. And Ban Ki-moon said he is not a scientist. I myself am a scientist, so I can speak to this subject of climate change with authority — with greater authority,” Ruto said.
The president’s claim came as he painted a grim picture of Kenya’s recent climate-related tragedies, recalling how the country had just emerged from the worst drought in 40 years, only to be struck by deadly floods months later.
“Just two years ago, we had the most serious drought in Kenya’s history in four decades. We lost almost 2.5 million herds of cattle. And subsequently, the year after, we had very serious floods. Almost thirty people here in Nairobi lost their lives,” Ruto said.
He used Kenya’s back-to-back climate disasters to drive home the point that climate change is not a distant or abstract threat but a lived experience for many in the developing world.
“So we know what climate change means because we live through the effects every day,” he said.
Ruto added that many global leaders and decision-makers were still in denial, or at least hesitant, to confront the reality of the crisis head-on.
He challenged climate sceptics to look at what was unfolding not just in Kenya but across the world.
“And I agree with Ban Ki-moon that there are world leaders and policymakers who are yet to come to terms with the realities of climate change. But that does not mean we cannot forge a future together. I want to persuade those who second-guess the effects of climate change that we are living in reality. Climate change is real. The effects it is having are real,” he said.
Widespread disaster
On the same note, Ruto, who was speaking in the presence of former United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, said that no country should downplay matters to do with climate change, as it is a crisis that does not discriminate on where it strikes.
He noted that he had been keeping up with global news and had seen that the United States of America had just recently been struck by extremely devastating floods.
He said all leaders should make it a priority to enter into partnerships with him and other nations so that they can be able to counter the disaster and make collective progress for the good of all.
“Climate change is real. The effects it is having are real. Floods — we just recently saw floods in the USA — very devastating. We are seeing the effects in different parts of the world. And effects of climate change are democratic. We share equally, and therefore we must seek solutions for it together,” he concluded.