GO BLUE IN UNHABITAT- WORLD URBAN FORUM, 2022
KATOWICE, POLAND
Earlier today, 28th June 2022 between the hours 14.00pm and 15.00pm Central European Time (CET), Kenya got its hour at the 11th World Urban Forum in Katowice, Poland. Described as the premier global conference on sustainable urbanization, this year being the 11th session the World Urban Forum, had the Go Blue Kenya Project, given a session to engage on the topic, Connecting people, cities and the Ocean for a Sustainable and Resilient Kenya Coast.
The session, opened with remarks from Ms. Maimunah Mohd Sharif, UN Under-Secretary-General & Executive Director, UN-Habitat. It hosted a high powered panel of Speakers including H.E. Jean Kimani, Ambassador & Permanent Representative of the Republic of Kenya to UN Habitat, Mr. Florian Lux, Project Manager, Go Blue; Mr. Emmanuel Kombe Nzai, Chief Executive Officer, JKP and moderated by Mr. Jeremiah Ougo, Urban Planner, Go Blue Project
The event served to discuss approaches for developing an integrated, ecosystem-based land-sea planning framework that guides all other spatial planning and management activities for sustainable use and conservation of the blue economy in Kenya’s 6 coastal counties - Mombasa, Kwale, Kilifi, Lamu, Taita Taveta and Tana River - under the coast regional economic block (JKP). The event addressed key human settlements and environmental challenges facing the blue economy in Africa. It show-cased community-led, low cost, technologies and approaches for stimulating benefits from coastal cities and the blue economy. Other key issues raised were the need for creation of employment as well as scalability of the approach.