Balance economic expansion with environment conservation, First Lady Margaret Kenyatta says

First Lady Margaret Kenyatta has called for the formulation of policies that balance economic expansion activities with environmental conservation.

The First Lady noted that the country’s environment is under stress from a rapidly growing population.

She called for closer partnership between the government and the private sector to bolster environmental conservation.

She spoke Tuesday night during the National Environment Trust Fund (NETFUND) Green Innovations Awards gala dinner at Safari Park Hotel in Nairobi.

Cabinet Secretary Judi Wakhungu and the Resident Coordinator for the United Nations office in Nairobi (UNON), Ms Nardos Bekele-Thomas, were also present.

The NETFUND Green Innovations Awards, sponsored by the Swedish Embassy in Nairobi, aim to harness and share knowledge, technology and innovation in order to encourage broader economic and social growth within a sustainable framework.

The First Lady stressed the need for the country to embrace green growth and technologies for posterity.

She said the private sector has the required resources for eco-innovations that would guarantee sustainable environmental conservation.

She added that the degraded environment required a multi-stakeholder approach to redeem it.

ECONOMIC GROWTH

As the government establishes a framework for incentives in the marketplace to encourage eco-innovations, the First Lady said the business community also plays a role in conservation through awards to environmentalists.

“I feel privileged to be part of the NETFUND Green Innovations Awards scheme that emphasises dual ecological and economic solutions to the environmental problems we face,” she said.

The First Lady said the model encourages economic growth and ensures sustainable environmental conservation by promoting social inclusion.

The head of The Kenya Development Cooperation section of the Swedish Embassy, Mr Anders Ronquist, pledged his government’s commitment support to Kenya’s water sector in the next five years.

Twenty-two organisations and individuals who excelled in seven Green Innovations categories were awarded cash prizes.

Winners took home Sh1 million while runners-up in second and third positions received Sh500,000 and Sh250,000, respectively.