Kenya on Wednesday launched a USD34 million project aimed at cushioning the effects of drought caused by climate change, targeting communities living in arid regions of the country.

Finance and environment ministry officials said the five-year Green Climate Fund would go towards helping 6,20,000 people in 11 regional counties in arid and semi-arid areas and would endeavour to restore over 5,00,000 hectares of rangelands. Keriako Tobiko, the minister for environment and forestry, said these areas account for 80 percent of the East African country's land mass, and were more susceptible to the effects of climate change.

"These areas and communities living in these areas are most vulnerable; pastoral communities, nomadic communities and really this programme helps to address the most deserving of cases," Tobiko told an online briefing at the project's launch. Kenya loses 2.0 to 2.4 per cent of its gross domestic product annually due to effects of climate change, such as drought and floods, according to a 2018 Kenya National Bureau of Statistics study. The study also showed droughts cost Kenya 8 per cent of GDP every five years.

Kenya is a country in East Africa with coastline on the Indian Ocean. It encompasses savannah, lakelands, the dramatic Great Rift Valley and mountain highlands. It's also home to wildlife like lions, elephants and rhinos. From Nairobi, the capital, safaris visit the Maasai Mara Reserve, known for its annual wildebeest migrations, and Amboseli National Park, offering views of Tanzania's 5,895m Mt. Kilimanjaro

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