Kenya’s Lake Turkana Wind Project
This week’s most important headlines out of and about Africa.
In this week’s news, Kenya is set to have the largest wind farm on the continent and the International Criminal Court loses Burundi, Gambia and South Africa.
Kenya to host largest wind farm in Africa
There has been an influx of energy investment toward the African continent. The Lake Turkana Wind Project (LTWP) covers 40,000 acres and is set to be the largest wind farm on the continent by June 2017. This stems from the global push to move from existing conventional power generation toward renewable energy.
This project seeks to boost Kenya’s energy capacity and contribute to the country’s national grid. U.S.-based company Google, Inc. is the project’s largest investor and has committed to giving more than $2.5 billion to 22 renewable energy projects across the globe.
Under LTWP, the Winds of Change Foundation (WoC) has emerged. The organization seeks to improve livelihood of communities in the Project area. WoC enhances employment through educational and vocational training. It also seeks to support health services and water supply in the community.
The five biggest wind energy markets are along the coastal regions of Africa. These markets are South Africa, Morocco, Egypt, Ethiopia and Kenya.
South Africa, Burundi and Gambia to leave International Criminal Court
The International Criminal Court (ICC) tries individuals with charges of crimes against humanity. This judicial institution is meant to assist the international community in the global fight against impunity. The rise in the number African countries calling upon the ICC’s “unfair” targeting of non-Western countries is gaining media attention. ICC spokesman Fadi El Abdallah has urged these countries to reconsider before there next general assembly.
“We all hope that indeed there will be a serious and fruitful discussion that would dissipate and misunderstandings or misconceptions of the court and would allow the international community, with all these countries, to continue supporting the global fight against impunity through the ICC,” Abdallah said.
United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon spoke at at security council meeting on October 28 and voiced concern for these actions. “The world has made enormous strides in building a global system of international criminal justice, with the International Criminal Court as its centrepiece”, Ki-moon said. “I regret these steps, which could send a wrong message on these countries’ commitment to justice.”
