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Ruto unveils 'game-changer' solar project to end charcoal use in public schools
Caption: President William Ruto speaking during the Alliance High School Centenary Celebration at Alliance High School in Kikuyu on March 1, 2026. The event marked 100 years since the founding of the institution.
The government is embarking on an ambitious plan to solarise all schools before the next general election.
President William Ruto said by the end of next year, the dream should have been realised, following what he described as a successful pilot in over 260 schools.
“We are launching a sh45 billion program to solarise 3200 schools in the republic of Kenya to move them away from cutting trees into using solar for cooking, lighting and energy needs,” Dr Ruto said.
President William Ruto (centre) joins Basic Education PS Julius Bitok, Alliance High School Captain Ethan Muraya and church leaders in cutting a cake during the Alliance High School Centenary Celebration at the school in Kikuyu on March 1, 2026, marking 100 years of academic excellence and national impact.
The project, which targets thousands of public learning institutions across the country, is part of the government’s broader push towards renewable energy and climate-friendly infrastructure in public institutions.
The Head of State spoke at the Alliance High School centenary celebrations, where he explained that it is a deliberate move to reduce the country’s carbon footprint, and also aims at reducing the use of biomass and ensuring that learning is undertaken with green energy.
The program, President Ruto said, had been undertaken by the ministries of energy and the Ministry of Education in partnership with the Kenya Commercial Bank.
According to President Ruto, KCB extended a credit facility with a 30 per cent discount to enable the realisation of the project.
The solar project, Dr Ruto said, is expected to generate 780 megawatts of energy, and part of the electricity produced will be fed into the national grid during school holidays and other periods when institutions are closed.
“My instructions to the ministry of energy is that you buy that energy, even if it means at a discount so that the schools can have some resources to develop other infrastructure… There’s every reason why we should support this program,” President Ruto said.
If implemented as planned, the initiative could significantly cut schools’ reliance on firewood and charcoal for cooking, while also lowering electricity costs in institutions that struggle with energy access.
However, Kenya has previously witnessed several ambitious technology-driven education projects stall midway, raising questions about whether the solarisation programme will avoid the fate of earlier pledges.
If successfully executed, the school's solarisation project will be a game-changer and will bolster Dr Ruto’s legacy as a climate change enthusiast.
President Ruto also pledged several goodies for the a-century-old school and its sister school, saying that his government will spend a total of Sh550 million in revamping it. He also promised them a school bus.
For its sister school, Alliance Girls, he said he will build a Sh150 million dormitory, Sh40 million for the construction of 24 classrooms, and another Sh100 million for the completion of its science complex.
“We must develop our capacity through education, science and technology,” he said, hailing several projects he had undertaken to "transform" the education sector.
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