Kenya Positions Itself as Environmental Diplomatic Hub Ahead of UNEA-7
Environment, Climate Change and Forestry Cabinet Secretary Deborah Barasa speaking to the press at Serena Hotel , Nairobi on November 28,2025.
Kenya says it is fully prepared to host the Seventh Session of the United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA-7), using the global gathering to showcase its environmental leadership, advance Africa’s priorities, and strengthen multilateral action on the triple planetary crisis.
Speaking during a media briefing in Nairobi, Environment Cabinet Secretary Dr. Deborah Barasa said Kenya enters UNEA-7 both as host nation and as a solutions-driven global actor. She described the Assembly as coming at a defining moment, with countries confronting interlinked threats of climate change, pollution, and biodiversity loss.
“Kenya approaches UNEA-7 not just as the host country but as a global leader and bridge builder,” Barasa said, adding that the country will push outcomes aligned with national priorities, including the Bottom-Up Economic Transformation Agenda (BETA) and the constitutional right to a clean and healthy environment.
Barasa said Kenya will champion Africa’s collective voice at the meeting, emphasising equitable financing, technology transfer, and capacity building for developing countries. The country is also sponsoring three resolutions on antimicrobial resistance, sustainable artificial intelligence systems, and promoting sustainable solutions through sport, underscoring its intent to shape global environmental direction.
On plastics, Barasa reaffirmed Kenya’s tough stance, insisting that the upcoming global plastics treaty must address the full life cycle of plastics, not merely waste management.
“Kenya will not support a treaty that just manages waste,” she said. “It must tackle production, consumption, and disposal.”
UNEP Executive Director Inger Andersen, who also addressed the media, thanked Kenya for its continued leadership and long-standing support as host nation of UNEP headquarters. She noted that UNEA-7 will draw more than 55 ministers and 3,500 delegates, who will negotiate 19 draft resolutions covering artificial intelligence, minerals and metals, wildfires, and issues related to the hydrological cycle.
Andersen warned that environmental impacts are accelerating, citing record heatwaves, vanishing ecosystems, and rising pollution. While acknowledging progress since UNEA-6, including the establishment of the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Panel on Chemicals, Waste, and Pollution, she said the world remains off-track.
“These are global threats that spare no nation and demand global solutions,” she said.
The Assembly, themed “Advancing Sustainable Solutions for a Resilient Planet,” will run from December 8–12 in Nairobi, with President William Ruto expected to open the High-Level Segment on December.
