Ruto to lead Kenyan delegation to COP27 in Egypt

President William Ruto will on Sunday lead the Kenyan delegation to the 27th Conference of the Parties.

In a statement by State House spokesperson Hussein Mohamed, the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change event will be held in Sharmel-Sheikh, Egypt.

Ruto will also be attending the annual conference as the chairman of the committee of African Heads of State and Government on climate change.

He will deliver the Kenyan national statement and a statement on behalf of Africa.

This comes at a time of interlocking crises including energy and food insecurity, and in the midst of the worst drought in 40 years affecting Kenya and the Horn of Africa.

Ruto is expected to make a strong case for Kenya and Africa, with African nations still bearing the brunt of the impacts of emissions from the developed world.

The Head of State is expected to rally the globe towards more ambitious climate action, seeking implementation and honoring of commitments made over the past 30 years.

The commitments are by countries with the greatest responsibilities for accumulating greenhouse gases causing global warming.

He will also be outlining Kenya’s policies and strategies to tap into the global carbon market.

Demonstrably, climate change mitigation and adaptation is at the front and centre of President Ruto’s development agenda.

Ruto described it as “a phenomenon complicating the roadmap towards socio-economic transformation and achievement of sustainable development goals in Kenya and Africa.”

Among other interventions, including securing and protecting public forests, Ruto has already announced an ambitious reforestation programme to grow at least 15 billion trees in the next 10 years for Kenya to attain 30 per cent tree-cover by 2032.