Analysis of the implications of the value-added tax on clean cooking in Kenya

A key policy objective of the Government of Kenya (GoK) is to meet the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 7 target of universal access to clean cooking solutions by 2028. This objective—publicly announced at the Nairobi Clean Cooking Forum in November 2019—is motivated by the many benefits of cleaner cooking solutions, including improved livelihoods, health, environmental quality, and climate change mitigation. However, in 2020, Kenya re-introduced VAT and import duty on a range of clean cooking solutions, threatening progress towards this goal. This policy brief shares evidence from a study on the costs and benefits of reintroducing the VAT.