Highlights and images for 18 July 2025

Pomp and color marked the celebration of 40 years of the African Ministerial Conference on the Environment (AMCEN) at the UN Office in Nairobi on Friday. Established in 1985 in Cairo, Egypt, AMCEN has been the continent’s voice on the global environmental stage. To mark the day, delegates convened in a high-level special session to reflect on the achievements of the Conference and share hopes and suggestions for AMCEN’s future. 

Opening to the sounds of drums, the session featured a series of video messages celebrating AMCEN. Speakers recalled milestones in AMCEN’s history, including the Bamako Convention on Hazardous Wastes and the Great Green Wall Initiative.

Inger Andersen, Executive Director, UN Environment Programme (UNEP), welcomed the Tripoli Declaration on Environmental Action in Africa, noting it commits AMCEN to safeguarding Africa’s natural capital, advancing green growth, and empowering communities for environmental stewardship.

Fitsum Assefa Adela, Minister of Planning and Development, Ethiopia, and AMCEN-19 President, underlined AMCEN’s role as the foremost environmental platform for policy, dialogue, and action.

Speakers also characterised this anniversary as a turning point for the Conference, calling for a bold and transformative next chapter, rethinking development pathways, and strengthening partnerships.

Claver Gatete, Executive Secretary, UN Economic Commission for Africa, urged for continuing to align the road ahead with the African Union’s Agenda 2063 and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

Kevin Kariuki, Vice President, Power, Energy, Climate, and Green Growth, African Development Bank (AfDB), highlighted that AMCEN and the AfDB share the common goals of achieving a prosperous, low-carbon, and climate-resilient future for Africa.

Rose Mwebaza, Director and Regional Representative for Africa, UNEP, underscored that AMCEN’s founding vision, of putting Africa’s environment at the heart of development, dignity, and destiny, is more critical than ever. She encouraged delegates to reimagine Africa as a continent of solutions, rather than one defined by crisis.

Deborah Mlongo Barasa, Kenya’s Cabinet Secretary for Environment, Climate Change and Forestry, then unveiled the report on AMCEN@40: A Legacy of Environmental Diplomacy and Leadership in Africa. The report reflects the Conference’s defining milestones, key achievements on the global environment stage, and envisioning “the Africa we want in 2063.”

The morning continued with messages of celebration, insights on opportunities for the road ahead, and reports of AMCEN’s impact across multilateral conventions and sectors from high-level speakers, including Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Chair Jim Skea, who acknowledged AMCEN’s role in championing science and knowledge to guide climate action on the continent.

Jessika Roswall, European Commissioner for Environment, Water Resilience and a Competitive Circular Economy, welcomed the recent launch of the African Union’s Continental Circular Economy Action Plan, commending Africa’s leadership in this domain.

Astrid Schomaker, Executive Secretary, Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), applauded AMCEN and delegates’ commitment to decoupling socioeconomic progress from the root causes of the triple planetary crisis, and highlighted synergies between Agenda 2063 and the objectives of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, “the world’s masterplan to halt biodiversity loss.”

Matthias Naab, Director, Regional Service Centre for Africa, UN Development Programme (UNDP), underlined AMCEN’s role as a platform for defining, defending, and delivering Africa’s priorities, and urged moving “from ambition to action, declarations to delivery.”

Catherine Koffman, Director, Department of the Africa Region, Green Climate Fund (GCF), highlighted the milestones achieved in AMCEN’s history through the effective use of strategic partnerships, and noted the importance of the Africa Environment Outlook reports in guiding policymakers.

Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) Chair David Obura welcomed the continued opportunity to work with AMCEN to address context-specific challenges in biodiversity conservation.

Cecilia Njenga, on behalf of the Executive Secretary of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), lauded AMCEN for shaping the global agenda on climate, biodiversity, and sustainable development, noting that AMCEN has led the call for climate finance.

Ivonne Higuero, Secretary-General, Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), applauded the recent operationalization of the African Group of Negotiators on Wildlife and the AMCEN decision on Africa’s participation at CITES, noting these will amplify Africa’s impact on the global conservation stage.

Musonda Mumba, Secretary-General, Ramsar Convention on Wetlands, highlighted the Convention’s 15th meeting of the Conference of the Parties, taking place in Zimbabwe immediately following AMCEN-20, as an opportunity for enhancing Africa’s leadership in protecting critical wetland environments.

Delegates then adopted the High-Level Political Statement in Commemoration of AMCEN@40, presented by Robert Wabunoha, AMCEN Secretariat. Thanking delegations for their work and active participation, AMCEN-20 President Ibrahim Munir closed the special session at 12:54 pm.