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United Nations Nairobi Office issues traffic alert

By Hillary Kimuyu February 28th, 2022 2 min read

The United Nations Office at Nairobi (UNON) has warned motorists using the United Nations Avenue in Gigiri to expect heavy traffic along the road.

In a notice, the UNON which is hosting the UN Environment Assembly (UNEA) from February 28 to March 2, and a special session to mark the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) 50 years in Nairobi explained that there will be increased human and vehicle traffic because of the two events.

The UNEA will, among other issues, discuss climate change, biodiversity and nature loss as well as waste and pollution management.

The meeting will bring together the world’s highest environmental decision-making body.

Following this, motorists plying the route have been urged to seek alternative routes to avoid delays.

“In view of the above, we encourage those who normally use UN Avenue route to either seek alternatives and or use other means of transportation,” the notice read in part.

The biannual UNEA will mark the fifth session since the first Environmental Assembly that was held in Nairobi in 2014.

“UNEP turns 50 this year and whilst great strides have been made to safeguard and encourage the sustainable use of the environment, more still needs to be done,” said Sonja Leighton-Kone, acting Deputy Executive Director for UNEP.

“The conference is timely as it will serve as the second international conference being held after the COP26 that was held in Glasgow [in 2021].”

The theme for this year is “Strengthening Nature-Based Actions to Achieve Sustainable Development Goals.”

More than a hundred countries are expected to take the first steps toward establishing a historic global treaty to address the world’s plastic crisis; Governments are under increasing pressure to band together in the fight against the global scourge.

Diplomats say the framework for a legally binding plastic treaty being hammered out by negotiators is the most ambitious environmental pact since the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement.

Since its inception, UNEP has offered steady and critical stewardship on matters of the environment as the leading global environmental authority.

UNEP carries out its functions of setting the global environment agenda, promoting the coherent implementation of the environmental dimension of sustainable development within the United Nations system, and serving as an authoritative advocate for the global environment.