The fifth United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA-5), held in Nairobi from February 28 to March 2, 2022, brought together representatives from 193 UN member states, youth groups, civil society, and businesses to address pressing environmental challenges.
Led by UNEP Executive Director Inger Andersen, the assembly prioritized global solutions to plastic pollution, harmful agricultural chemicals, and nature-based sustainable development.
Andersen emphasized, “This is our chance to begin to act on what the science is telling us,” highlighting the urgency of tackling the estimated 11 million tons of plastic waste entering oceans annually, costing ecosystems $50 billion, as stated by UNEP’s law division director Patricia Kameri-Mbote.
Plastic Pollution Treaty Framework
A key outcome of UNEA-5 was the adoption of a resolution to establish an Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC) to draft a legally binding treaty to end plastic pollution by 2024.
The framework, merging proposals from Rwanda, Peru, and Japan, gained support from 54 countries, including many African nations.
The treaty aims to address the full lifecycle of plastics, from production to disposal, with 80% of ocean plastics originating from rivers, particularly in Asia, per Our World in Data.
UNEA President Espen Barth Eide clarified, “This is not an anti-plastics treaty… we want to bring it into a much more viable, circular economy,” countering lobbying from oil and chemical companies, as reported by Reuters, which sought to weaken production curbs.
Innovative Solutions in Africa
In Benin, Green Keeper Africa, a startup founded in 2014, showcased nature-based solutions by transforming invasive water hyacinth from Lake Nokoué into absorbents for oil spills, compost, and biofuel.
Women’s cooperatives also harvest the plant to weave baskets, create home decor, and produce eco-friendly packaging, turning an environmental nuisance into economic opportunity.
Similarly, Ghana’s initiatives, like building homes from recycled plastic, reflect regional efforts to combat pollution, aligning with UNEA’s goals.
These innovations highlight Africa’s role in sustainable development, despite receiving only 3% of global climate finance in 2021, per the IPCC.
Challenges and Industry Pushback
The treaty faces hurdles, with negotiations expected to take at least two years.
Environmental Investigation Agency campaigner Christina Dixon warned, “If we don’t get the right formulation, the INC will be limited,” noting that a single word in international law could determine the treaty’s success.
Environmental groups, active in Nairobi, pressed for ambitious measures against industry resistance from fossil fuel-based plastic manufacturers.
The IPCC’s February 2022 report, warning of climate impacts on 3.6 billion people, underscored the urgency, with plastic pollution exacerbating marine ecosystem collapse.
UNEP’s 50th Anniversary
UNEA-5 concluded with a special session on March 3–4, 2022, marking UNEP’s 50th anniversary. Andersen celebrated “50 years of delivering science, 50 years of helping countries build environmental law, brick by brick.”
The session reflected on UNEP’s role since 1972, including shaping agreements like the Montreal Protocol.
Amid global crises—Russia’s Ukraine invasion, Myanmar’s refugee exodus, and discrimination against African students fleeing Ukraine—UNEA-5’s focus on actionable environmental policies offered hope.
Posts on X in 2022 praised African innovations like Benin’s, while urging stronger global commitments to curb pollution and emissions.
