Developing countries have generally been overlooked in downstream carbon tradingbased policy research. This can be attributed to the greater responsibility of developed economies for climate change, and the greater socio-demographic, political and technological challenges faced by their less-developed counterparts. This paper attempts to address this gap by examining the practicality of implementing Personal Carbon Trading (PCT) for personal road transport in Kenya. PCT is investigated with a focus on political considerations, potential system operation and the distributional impact of quota allocation to motorists. Three quota allocation methods are modelled using data from a survey of 500 motor vehicle owners in Nairobi and Mombasa counties. Equal per-capita, equal per-vehicle and needs-based allocation methods are modelled and assessed to determine the distributional impact on various groups of interest. Emissions were found to be highly correlated to vehicle engine size and the number of dependents per vehicle, but not to area of residence or income levels. None of the three allocation methods disproportionately imposed burdens on vulnerable groups, and all exhibited progressive tendencies. The proposed system is intended to add new insight into the possibility of PCT becoming a globally inclusive policy option. Key Policy Insights. Despite PCT being a bold policy proposal even for developed countries, less developed counterparts can meet the political, institutional and technological requirements to implement it.. The wealth of functionality available through SIM card features on cheap and abundant mobile phones may unlock a simple and cost-effective, globallyapplicable PCT system.. Public resistance to fuel price increases stems from the lower income demographic which is, conversely, rewarded with surpluses under PCT.. Equal-per capita allocation remains the most progressive method.. Needs-based allocation is highly progressive and may be worth considering when more stringent targets are deemed necessary.
As downstream road transport has not been fully integrated into any emissions trading scheme, this paper proposes and evaluates the possibility of one by addressing the main barriers hindering its development. Based on this, a scheme which separates the “Cap” and “Trade” participation to motorists and local governments, respectively, is presented through a systematic review. We investigate how the scheme addresses the problems of cost, administrative burden, and fuel allowance allocation as they are all key factors that need equal consideration. We also justify the model’s unique structure and characteristics against the world’s largest scheme, the European Union Emissions Trading System (EU ETS), to ensure they cater to the three aforementioned issues barring its viability. It is concluded that, by amending specific policy attributes of a road-based emissions trading scheme significantly, it could be more practical both economically and administratively. Also, leveraging on existing institutional arrangements would allow for an economically feasible environment for the administration and management of such a scheme.
Personal carbon trading (PCT) has garnered significant interest in the literature as an alternative policy instrument to the largely unpopular carbon tax. However, it has been hindered by the cost and administrative complexity concerns as a result of covering potentially millions of emitters. This work expands on a prior study which presented a mobile phone-based PCT scheme for personal road transport in Kenya. In that study, the system design and operation was extensively developed, and distributional impact was assessed using sample data of motorists to identify equity issues. In this extension, I justify the scheme further by assessing the cost concerns using a case study approach of the mobile service provider, Safaricom. Data from the sample survey is revisited and combined with Safaricom’s financial reports to simulate the potential cost of the scheme. Results revealed running costs of less than £80 000 annually, several times lower than estimates that relied on the chip card system. Policymakers and researchers are encouraged to build on this scheme’s viability as a globally-inclusive variant of PCT.
Kenya still uses a purely value-based motor vehicle taxation system. No environmentally focused fiscal policies exist for vehicle ownership and usage, yet up to a quarter of the country's carbon dioxide emissions originate from the transport and energy sectors. To achieve its Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) objectives for road transport, current vehicle taxes should be revised to reduce emissions through incentivizing newer and hybrid vehicle imports. The study projects Kenya's motor vehicle inventory using business-as-usual scenario building projections to determine the country's emissions and public revenue. The results conclude that vehicle age is directly proportional to the tax rate and therefore motor vehicle CO 2 emissions could be decreased significantly by amending the current tax policies to incentivize a shift in consumer car choice and help Kenya meet its NDC emissions reduction target for 2030.
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