UN praises Kenya on transition to green economy

Kenya stands to gain greater economic benefits and food security while lowering the level of environmental pollution through a shift towards the green economy, UN said on Tuesday. A report launched by Kenya and the UN Environment Program (UNEP) urges the government to consider adopting targeted clean energy solutions for households and institutions and, making more investments in renewable energy. UNEP Executive Director Achim Steiner said during the launch in Nairobi that the next wave of investment and innovation in Kenya will be driven by the need for new energy sources, wealth generation and job creation. According to Steiner, Kenya is already demonstrating leadership by pioneering green economy approaches in the energy, urban and natural resources sectors as a vehicle to deliver its national development goals. The Green Economy Assessment Report finds that Kenya's transition to a green economy could produce equivalent to an estimated 45 billion U.S. dollars by 2030 in economic benefits as cleaner environment and higher productivity of natural resources.