President Mwai Kibaki of Kenya officially opened the 26th Session of the Governing Council of countries which oversee the work program and budget of the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) in Nairobi.
Kibaki said the gathering was one of the strongest voices on environmental sustainability, and a beacon of hope to the peoples of the world, who look up to UNEP and the Global Ministerial Environment Forum: "Indeed the people look up to this forum, to provide the necessary leadership and guidance in the ever increasing challenges of the global environment," he said.
Kibaki reaffirmed that the government was tapping into the country’s abundance of renewable energy to secure a future that was based on a sustainable green economy. He said that large scale investments in geothermal and wind energy production programs were already under implementation in the country and supported with extensive forest restoration programs. The president emphasized that smart innovations of the world have enormous potential to deliver win-win outcomes and help nations to become less vulnerable to climate change.
Urging all actors to support the strengthening of environmental governance through reforms that will elevate the Nairobi based UN agency to the status of other UN agencies on social and economic pillars, Kibaki acknowledged that the environmental challenges facing the world underscored the importance of a strong UNEP.
President Kibaki also advocated that the Green Climate Fund and the Global Environment Facility to support developing countries transition towards green growth and urged the participants to provide new impetus towards the Green Economy agenda.
