Dr Barasa: UNEA-7 must not just talk about the future, it must help create it

“Let us resolve that UNEA-7 will not just talk about the future, it will help create it,” Kenya’s Cabinet Secretary for Environment, Climate Change and Forestry Dr. Deborah Barasa declared Monday, delivering a compelling appeal for global unity and transformative environmental leadership as the seventh session of the United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA-7) opened in Nairobi.

By elevating her concluding line to the start of the day’s diplomatic proceedings, Dr. Barasa crystallized the sense of urgency defining this year’s Assembly.

Delegations from nearly every region of the world gathered at the United Nations Gigiri, Nairobi headquarters, facing a moment shaped by escalating climate impacts, accelerating biodiversity loss, land degradation, toxic pollution, and the mounting pressures of unsustainable consumption.

“It is truly a great honour and a heartfelt privilege to join you all today at the opening of UNEA-7, right here in Nairobi, the vibrant city that has become a beacon for our shared environmental future,” she said, addressing UNEA President Abdullah Bin Ali Al-Amri, United Nations (UN) Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed, United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) Executive Director Inger Andersen, and other leaders.

Dr. Barasa outlined Kenya’s central role throughout the weeklong Assembly. President William Ruto will deliver Kenya’s national statement on December 11, a moment she said she “eagerly look[s] forward to.” That afternoon, Kenya will co-host a luncheon with the Global Green Growth Institute titled “Bridging Divides, Building Solutions: Global Cooperation for a Circular Economy.” The event, she said, aims “to accelerate global action to end plastic pollution,” noting that returning to Nairobi, “the birthplace of the mandate,” provides an opportunity to reflect and advance collaborative solutions.

In keeping with UNEA tradition, she also invited delegates to the Kenyan country reception later that evening, an event she described as “a highlight of the Assembly you truly won’t want to miss.” She further encouraged participants to explore Kenyan exhibitions stationed across the venue, which offer “a unique glimpse into Kenya’s innovations, cultural diversity, and the strengths of our various sectors.”

Turning to the Assembly’s theme, “Advancing Sustainable Solutions for a Resilient Planet,” Dr. Barasa warned that the global community had reached a critical inflection point. “The time for small, cautious steps has passed; what we need now is bold, integrated, and inclusive action,” she said. The crises confronting humanity, she stressed, “cannot be tackled in isolation.”

UNEA-7 is expected to negotiate and adopt the Medium-Term Strategy and Programme of Work, the roadmap that will guide UNEP’s direction over the coming years. Kenya, she said, seeks to ensure that the strategy reflects “ambition, science-based policy, equity, and opportunities for innovation especially for developing countries.”

She highlighted three imperatives for the Assembly: sparking sustainable solutions that deliver multiple benefits; strengthening resilience so nations can “move from vulnerability to empowerment”; and championing inclusive environmental governance that ensures “women and youth, indigenous peoples, local communities, and marginalized groups have a voice and real power.” “Our solutions must be fair, just, practical, and leave no one behind,” Dr. Barasa said.

In her call to action, she underscored that “partnership is not optional, it is absolutely essential,” saying Kenya stands ready to collaborate with governments, civil society, academia and the private sector. “Guided by science, grounded in fairness,” she said, UNEA-7 must “forge a resilient planet for our generation and for those who will follow.”