- The theme of the sixth edition is, “Effective, inclusive and sustainable multilateral actions to tackle climate change, biodiversity loss and pollution.”
- Environment CS Soipan Tuya says the coming assembly is crucial as it seeks to answer questions on challenges facing the planet.
The sixth edition of the UNEP Environment Assembly will take place from February 26 to March 1 in Nairobi under the presidency of the Kingdom of Morocco.
Over 6,000 delegates are expected to attend. They include heads of state and government, ministers of environment and other high-ranking dignitaries and UN officials.
The theme of the sixth edition is, “Effective, inclusive and sustainable multilateral actions to tackle climate change, biodiversity loss and pollution.”
Environment CS Soipan Tuya says the coming assembly is crucial as it seeks to answer questions on challenges facing the planet.
The assembly is held every two years in Nairobi by virtue of Kenya being the global headquarters of the United Nations Environment Programme.
UNEA-6 has been organised around six thematic areas that were considered by members in developing the draft resolutions to compel more effective, inclusive and sustainable multilateral action, Tuya said.
“Twenty-two resolutions have been developed and are being negotiated by the member states along five clusters,” the CS told the media on February 8.
There are 20 draft resolutions and two draft decisions submitted for countries to discuss.
UNEA-6 comes in the context of a disturbing study released last May showing a 70 per cent decline in wildlife populations.
The losses occurred between 1977 and 2016.
Moreover, the National Wildlife Strategy 2030 that was released by the Naivasha-based Wildlife Research and Training Institute documented evidence showing a further 40 per cent decline in freshwater wetland ecosystems.
“The fragmentation is a result of the increase in human population over the years, which has resulted in demand for more land for settlement and crop farming. In addition, infrastructural development such as roads, railway lines, and oil pipelines has also contributed to the fragmentation,” the strategy says.
There was a 7.4 per cent loss of forest cover between 1990 and 2014; a nine per cent decline in insect pollinators; a 74 per cent loss of coral reefs by 1999; and a 90 per cent decrease in Mt Kenya snow cap cover due to climate change.
These worrying trends have implications for wildlife-habitat-human interactions in the fragmented landscapes of Kenya’s protected areas.
Plants are also being lost at worrying rates.
Wetlands, which make up four per cent of Kenya's surface area, are disappearing three times faster than forests.
A new report further shows that most migratory wildlife species are on the decline, while others are on the brink of extinction.
The first-ever State of the World’s Migratory Species report released on February 5 shows that while some migratory species listed under CMS are improving, nearly half (44 per cent) are showing population declines.
It was released by the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (CMS), a UN biodiversity treaty, and shows that more than one in five (22 per cent) of CMS-listed species are threatened with extinction.
“Nearly all (97 per cent) of CMS-listed fish are threatened with extinction,” the report says.
The extinction risk is growing for migratory species globally, including those not listed under CMS.
Half (51 per cent) of key biodiversity areas identified as important for CMS-listed migratory animals do not have protected status, and 58 per cent of the monitored sites recognised as being important for CMS-listed species are experiencing unsustainable levels of human-caused pressure.
The two greatest threats to both CMS-listed and all migratory species are overexploitation and habitat loss due to human activity.
Climate change, pollution, and invasive species are also having profound impacts on migratory species.
Globally, 399 migratory species that are threatened or near threatened with extinction are not currently listed under CMS.
The report provides a global overview of the conservation status and population trends of migratory animals, combined with the latest information on their main threats and successful actions to save them.
The report links the challenges facing the species to what experts call three planetary crises that need urgent attention.
The three crises facing the planet are climate change, biodiversity loss, and pollution.
World leaders have been trying to respond to the mounting challenges facing the planet.
In 2012, at the UN Conference on Sustainable Development, world leaders adopted an outcome document entitled “The Future We Want.”
Subparagraph 88(a) provided for universal membership in the governing council of UNEP, as well as other measures to strengthen its governance as well as its responsiveness and accountability to Member States.
Subsequently, the 54-member Governing Council was renamed the United Nations Environment Assembly, with all 193 member states as its members.
The UNEP governing council decided that the environment assembly would set the global environmental agenda, provide overarching policy guidance, and define policy responses to address emerging environmental challenges.
The assembly also undertakes policy review, dialogue and the exchange of experiences; sets strategic guidance on the future direction of UNEP; and fosters partnerships for achieving environmental goals and resource mobilisation.