Kenya has taken a significant step in fortifying its environmental agenda by broadening its working relationship with the United Nations Development Programme. Principal Secretary Festus Ngeno sat down with UNDP Kenya’s Resident Representative Jean-Luc Stalon for wide-ranging talks aimed at deepening cooperation on climate resilience and biodiversity conservation. The meeting underscored both parties’ shared commitment to translating global climate ambitions into concrete action on Kenyan soil.
Central to the discussions was the IMKA Gold Project, a UNDP-backed initiative currently running across four counties — Kakamega, Vihiga, Narok, and Migori. The project is set to wind up in May 2026, with formal site commissions already in the pipeline as the programme approaches its conclusion. Officials view the project as a demonstrable model for community-anchored environmental interventions in Kenya.
A considerable portion of the agenda was devoted to climate data collection in the country’s most at-risk regions. The environment department disclosed that trained enumerators have been deployed across these areas to support Kenya’s bid to access the Fund for Responding to Loss and Damage, in line with the Barbados Implementation Modalities. PS Ngeno underlined the critical importance of this data in informing Kenya’s official report on climate-induced losses and damage — a document that could help unlock much-needed international climate financing.
On the biodiversity front, Ngeno expressed keen interest in UNDP’s planned involvement in the BIOFIN Conference, scheduled for April 28, 2026. The gathering will bring together stakeholders to focus on putting the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework into practice — a landmark international agreement aimed at reversing nature loss and mobilising resources for conservation worldwide.
The expanded partnership also encompasses a busy calendar of environmental occasions that Kenya will co-host over the coming weeks. The International Day for Biological Diversity on May 22 is pencilled in for Elgeyo Marakwet, while the World Day to Combat Desertification on June 17 will take place in Kilifi. Mombasa, meanwhile, will play host to the Oceans Conference from June 16 to 18, an event expected to put the spotlight on marine conservation and blue-economy sustainability.
Taken together, these engagements signal Kenya’s intent to position itself as a proactive and well-prepared participant in the global environmental conversation. With UNDP’s technical backing and international reach, the government believes the country is better equipped than ever to safeguard its communities and natural ecosystems against the deepening pressures of climate change.
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