President William Ruto on Tuesday, September 5, proposed the introduction of a Carbon tax to deal with the adverse effects of climate change.
Speaking during the 2023 Africa Climate Summit at KICC, the Head of State lamented that climate change is eating away the continent’s Growth Domestic Product (GDP).
Ruto said Africa was losing 5 to 15 percent of its GDP growth every year to the widespread impacts of climate change.
This he said had forced the African governments to divert resources to deal with calamities such as drought that were not budgeted for.
As such, the president said that the introduction of a Carbon tax is the only way the countries can raise adequate resources
“To be able to unlock the resources that we need, to be able to drive this new investment and financing opportunities, especially for green energy we believe it is time to have a conversation about Carbon tax… we believe it’s among the ways that we can raise additional and adequate resources for us to finance our development,” Ruto said.
Climate finance is key, speakers said, with richer nations’ promise of $100 billion a year in climate finance to developing countries still unfulfilled.
A carbon tax is a penalty paid by businesses and industries that produce carbon dioxide through their operations.
The tax is designed to encourage such businesses to reduce their output of greenhouse gases and carbon dioxide, a colorless and odorless incombustible gas, into the atmosphere.
However, Ruto lamented that countries emitting Carbon gas were not remitting the penalty as required adding that the summit declaration will “firmly encourage” everyone to keep their promises.
“Those who produce the garbage refuse to pay their bills,” President William Ruto said.
