About KEREAKenya Renewable Energy Association (KEREA) is an independent non-profit association dedicated to facilitating the growth and development of renewable energy business in Kenya. KEREA was formed in August 2002 by members of the Renewable Energy Resources Technical Committee of the Kenya Bureau of Standards (KEBS) and is registered under section 10 of the societies act.

Amongst its key roles are promoting the interests of members of the renewable energy industry among government, public sector, the general public and any other organizations that may impact on the development of the industry; and the creation of a forum for the dissemination and exchange of information and ideas on matters relating to renewable energy development and utilization in Kenya.

Vision“To be a relevant and significant participant in the promotion and adoption of Renewable Energy in Kenya”

Mission“To facilitate the growth and development of renewable energy business in Kenya”

KEREA’s core activities include:-• Promoting and creating aware-

ness on renewable energy as well as providing information on renewable energy markets, market actors and technologies

• Supporting training, capac-ity building and certification activities in the renewable en-ergy field and accreditation of renewable energy product and service providers

• Research for purposes of in-forming advocacy and lobbying activities and to collect informa-tion on renewable energy prod-ucts and markets

• Pro-renewable energy lobbying and advocacy to improve the business environment and en-courage adoption

• Networking, Business Linkages and Coordination, to facilitate and encourage synergies between various activities e.g. programs, projects and/or initiatives in the renewable energy field

KEREA’s Objectives• Increased awareness levels and adoption of renewable energy

technologies

• Increase in the number of qualified renewable energy practitioners and increase in skill level and improvement in the quality of products and services provided

• Pro-renewable energy policies and regulations and improved business environment for renewable energy

• Increased coordination between actors and stakeholders when developing and implementing renewable energy initiatives

• Diverse KEREA membership and increased collaboration/cooperation between members and partners

• Institutional strengthening and operational excellence

Recent ActivitiesMainstreaming of the Developed Solar PV Curriculum in Technical Training Institutions

Under the IFC funded Kenya PV Capacity Building project KEREA had a key role in coordinating the development and mainstreaming of a solar PV training curriculum. Following the development of the curriculum, in 2009 KEREA interacted the ten technical training institutions with a view to build the capacity of these institutions to offer solar PV training courses.

In December 2010, to pilot the mainstreaming of the curriculum, 4 training staff from four technical training institutions i.e. Coast Institute of Technology, Machakos Technical Training Institute, Gusii Institute of Technology and Kisumu Rotary Youth Polytechnic, underwent a basic Solar PV training of trainers course.

The long term objective of the training was to equip graduates from these institutions with basic solar technical skills to enable them design, install, maintain, troubleshoot and repair basic solar home systems.

MoU with the Kenya Industrial Development and Research Institute (KIRDI) on research and capacity building in solar thermal technologies

The activities under the MoU include:

• Performance reports of thermosyphon solar water heaters in the field

• Development of a testing facility solar water heaters at KIRDI

• Development and delivery of training in Solar Water installation to after-sales service at the Test Centre

Renewable Energy Sector Business and Study Tour to Bavaria

In collaboration with the Bavaria Employer’s Association and financial support from the Bavarian Ministry of Economic Affairs, Infrastructure, Transport and Technology, KEREA coordinated a Renewable Energy Sector Business and Study Tour for 9 Kenyan participants to Bavaria, Germany from 23-30th October 2011.

The objectives of the seminar were to establish a business-to-business network by initializing contacts between Kenyan and Bavarian companies. The thematic focus was on solar, geothermal, and micro-hydro. East Africa Energy Association Initiative (supported by GIZ)

The renewable energy associations of Rwanda, Uganda, Tanzania and Kenya are looking to jointly strengthen their capacity to provide effective services for the development of the renewable energy sectors in East Africa. To undertake this, the national RE associations are developing a collaborative framework which will coordinate these activities. The associations seek to partner with international partners i.e. established international RE associations and RE research, development and capacity building institutions to achieve this objective. Using jointly sourced grants, these partners will work through the proposed East African RE Association to build the national RE association’s capacity Collecting, consolidating and providing inputs on the draft VAT bill on behalf of Kenya’s Renewable Energy Sector.

Through the coordination of the Kenya Renewable Energy Association (KEREA) and with support from the IFC/ World Bank, renewable energy sector players met on the 24th of August, 2011 at the IFC offices in Upper hill Nairobi to review the draft VAT bill. Amendments to the bill were proposed to support renewables and there were submitted to the Treasury. KEREA will seek to further reinforce this through meetings with the Ministries of Energy and Finance

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UNDP Energy Access Program

Finalizing a MoU with the United Nations Development Program and the Ministry of Energy to coordinate some Renewable Energy sector activities under a 5-year UNDP Energy Access Project.

Under the MoU KEREA seeks to implement the following activities to prepare the sector for the proposed solar PV regulations.

• Develop database of solar PV sector players i.e. manufacturers, importers, vendors, contractors and technicians

• Harmonization of existing training curriculum (incl. training materials) with a view to Standardize Private Sector Based Solar Training Programs and Future Institutionalization of Solar PV Training in Public Technical Training Institutions

• Capacity of solar PV sector players built – 200 technicians, 100 vendors, 60 trainers, examiners and inspectors as required to enforce the new regulations, KRA and KEBS staff responsible for standards enforcement

• Capacity of 30 technical training institutions built to offer solar PV training courses

• Awareness raising on the new regulations and their implications to solar PV sector players and the market

• Solar PV Standards updated to accommodate solar PV product de-velopments

• Solar PV design tools for vendors developed and disseminated

KEREA will also hold a stakeholder meeting to share the project document and seek views on how some of the activities could be strengthened

KEREA Membership Categories

KEREA has the following membership categories• Full Membership is open to registered corporate bodies,

individuals, NGOs, Consultants, academic institutions, and other organizations that have been active in the renewable energy industry

a) Full membership fee: • Corporate: Registration KES 5,000; annual subscription fee of KES 20,000 • Individual: Registration KES 2,500; annual subscription fee of KES 5,000 b) Academic institutions: registration KES 2,500; annual subscription fee of KES 5,000 c) Students membership: registration KES 500; annual subscription fee of KES 1,000

d) Technicians membership: registration KES 500; annual subscription fee of KES 1,000

• Associate Membership is open to any individual persons or organizations that have demonstrated strong commitment to Renewable Energy Technologies provided that they fulfill their other obligations to the association.

a) Associate membership: registration KES 1,500; annual subscription fee of KES3,000

Honorary Membership is open to well-wishers of the association and any such member who may be recommended by the Executive Committee of the Association

For more information please contact

KEREAKenya Renewable Energy Association

at:Kenya Industrial Research Development Institute (KIRDI)1st Floor, Engineering Block, South C Campus,Kapiti Road, Off Mombasa road,

P.O. Box 42040 - 00100Nairobi, Kenya.Tel: (+254 20) 201 4401Cell phone: 0715116738E-mail:administrator@kerea.org, chairman@kerea.orgWebsite: www.kerea.org

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KEREAKenya Renewable Energy Association

Vision

“To be a relevant and significant participant in the promotion and adoption of Renewable Energy in Kenya”