Lunch seminar by Agnieszka Kazimierczuk: Taking off Against the Wind: the impact of the Wind Mega-Project on Inclusive Development in Kenya

The private investments contributing to (clean) energy in Africa are increasingly taking place at the pastoral margins: remote, so far neglected thus underdeveloped and poor regions of the continent inhabited by nomadic pastoralists. In Kenya, one of the most prominent examples of a private renewable energy investment at the pastoral margins is Lake Turkana Wind Power (LTWP). Initiated in 2006 by the Dutch company KP&P, this high-profile 310MW wind energy project is located on the south-east side of the Lake Turkana in Marsabit County – one of the most remote and poor regions of Kenya – so far seriously neglected by the government and investors. Its construction involved over 1,000 people (local, national and international) from more than twenty companies. It has created a substantial impact on the local economy and brought in new ways of collaborating and competing between international and national investors, as well as international, national and local stakeholders.

Private sector initiatives, and particularly large-scale infrastructure investments on global peripheries such as LTWP, are increasingly expected to contribute to the ‘inclusive development’ in developing countries. It was, however, noted that despite increased transparency of the companies about their corporate engagement in developing countries, the research investigating their specific contribution to the local (inclusive) development has been scarce and practically lacking in the context of private investments at the pastoral margins.

Therefore, this article will aspire to fill in this gap by examining the nature of LTWP’s contributions in relation to inclusive development in the context of pastoral margins as perceived through the eyes of the company and the local community.

You are all very welcome. Please bring your own lunch.