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By Daniel Wanjuki
 
Egypt will play host for the COP27 later this year. The same is happening when Kenya is slated to host the UNEA Conference on 28th February to 3rd March 2022.
 
The conference which will address the three-crisis facing humanity namely Climate change, biodiversity loss, waste management and pollution will be another crown in the jewel for Kenya. 

This also coincides with the commemoration of the United Nations Environment Program at 50 years. #UNEPAt50.
 
Africa should have a common voice going ahead and avoid the debacle that was COP 26 in Glasgow, Scotland where Africa was alleged to have been shortchanged.
 
There is a need for an Africa wide action to provide for the protection of the environment through encouragement of effective waste management and pollution prevention and control practices and for related purposes.
 
This aims at protecting the environment by ensuring the continent reduces pollution from activities that can be avoided such as plastic manufacturing, usage and disposal, reducing the likelihood of pollution occurring and wanton generation of methane gas from domestic, agricultural and industrial activities.
 
There is a need for research on ways of handling pollution, avoiding and reducing the generation of waste, while increasing the re-use and recycling of waste and effectively managing waste disposal.
 
The waste management field is a great way to help combat climate change as waste has been identified as a major contributor of greenhouse gases such as methane gas.  
 
This will be achieved if biogas digesters are promoted as a source of energy for communities such as residential homes and schools. Industries should also be encouraged to embrace biomass as an energy source without necessarily engaging in extractive forest resource use. Planting of fast-growing trees should be a priority in all societies as we combat climate change through carbon sequestration.
 
African technical institutions should teach green plumbing technologies that recognizes that water is a scarce commodity and recycling and reuse systems which would go a long way to ameliorate the scarce resource by generating other sources of water. 
 
By embracing nature based solutions such as Eco treat Waste Digester, this is the science of wastewater recycling. The recycled water can then be used for non-potable water uses such as flushing toilets and lawn irrigation.
 
I believe that by adoption of biological waste digestion should make it cheaper to manage waste without using mechanization yet giving waste management a resource reuse approach.
 
The wastewater treatment and waste to energy technologies will determine whether the world wins the climate change war. There is need for extended producer responsibility that will ensure proper management of wastewater and not just calling for exhausters to take it away.
 
There is need for investment in data collection and analysis on our waste management processes, both solid waste and liquid waste, in order to plan future development programs. Such data analytics can be complemented with artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning applications to assist in working from home as part of Covid-19 and water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH).
 
The president should foster Public Private Partnership in offering practical solutions in waste management, pollution control and ecosystem restoration and bequeath these best practices to the other African countries as a package. This will be a legacy that will outlive his tenure as chair.
President Uhuru Kenyatta recently took over the leadership of the Committee of African Heads of State and Government on Climate Change (CAHOSCC).
 
According to a statement from State House, February 6, indicated that the Head of State assumed the role on the just concluded 35th Ordinary Session of the Assembly of the African Union in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
 
Kenyatta takes over the mandate from his South African Counterpart President Cyril Ramaphosa.
CAHOSCC was created in 2009 to spearhead African Common Position on Climate Change and to ensure that Africa speaks with one voice in global climate change negotiations.
 
Daniel Wanjuki is the Lead Expert and CEO Ecosave Africa Ltd