Heads of State and Government, Ministers, Excellencies, Distinguished Delegates, Ladies and Gentlemen,

Thank you for this invitation to join you at the 20^th African Ministerial Conference on the Environment. It is truly an honour.

Taking care of our environment is at the heart of our partnership. Clean air and clean water are important to the health of our citizens around the world.

Clean production and energy efficiency will drive our future competitiveness on all continents. And the demand for environmental technologies is growing exponentially.

Now more than ever, our partnership in this area is needed. Global environmental challenges require common solutions. Stronger international cooperation and partnerships are more important than ever before.

The theme of AMCEN-20, “Reflecting on the Past and Imagining the Future” invites us to think of ways to strengthen our partnership and our common efforts.

Looking back we can see – all too clearly – the steady intensification of three interconnected crises: climate change, biodiversity loss, and pollution. No country or continent can tackle them alone. These are joint challenges – and our response must be collective.

The impact of these crises is often hardest on Africa. There are direct effects such as drought and desertification. And there are the indirect effects that arise as a result: increased migration pressures and a competition for resources that feeds insecurity and sometimes conflicts.

But increasingly, Europe faces these challenges too. To give just one example, water stress is becoming a serious threat to our environment, public health, and our economy. This means that we have much to learn from each other.

Let me highlight three areas where our cooperation is already strong – and must now grow stronger.

Together, we face the dual challenge of limiting warming to 1.5°C and adapting to impacts we already feel – droughts, floods, coastal erosion, food insecurity – just to name a few.

Africas potential for clean energy is vast. Lets unlock it – through investment, innovation, and shared ambition. The EU and its Member States are currently the largest provider of climate finance to Africa and this support will continue.

At COP15, we agreed on an ambitious Global Biodiversity Framework. The EU supports protecting at least 30% of land and sea, restoring degraded ecosystems, and ensuring just and equitable benefit-sharing from genetic resources. We are committed to working with international partners to realise these goals.

To do this we need to scale up joint initiatives like NaturAfrica which aims to protect biodiversity while boosting local development.

A clean economy is a productive and competitive economy. This realisation led to a number of recent initiatives to green the EU internal market and also our supply chains.

My visit to Nairobi made it clear that this is also a priority for Africa. I take great encouragement from the “Continental Circular Economy Action Plan for Africa (2024-2034)”, where I had the privilege to join African Union Commissioner Moses Vilakati at yesterdays launch.

The European Commission is a member of the African Circular Economy Alliance. We welcome Africas leadership in the push for a global agreement to end plastic pollution. The EU is committed to a treaty that is ambitious, legally binding, and grounded in equity.

I would also like to mention the EU Deforestation-free Regulation (EUDR). This is a landmark step by the European Union.

It will help promote transparency, traceability, and sustainability across global supply chains. It supports investment in sustainable land use, agroforestry, and circular value chains that can bring long-term economic and environmental benefits.

For the EUDR and for all environmental measures that can have an impact on our trading partners the EU is committed to maximum transparency, open dialogue and technical support to support our partners in this transition.

Excellencies, Distinguished Delegates, Ladies and Gentlemen,

Africa is not just a stakeholder in the global environmental agenda – it is a leader. AMCEN plays a vital role in shaping that voice.

Despite all the challenges, I also feel very inspired by everything I see her in Nairobi – your young people, the dynamism, the entrepreneurial spirit. 

The EU stands ready to deepen our cooperation and partnership – based on trust, fairness, and shared responsibility.

Let us act boldly and together – to halt nature and biodiversity loss, to build resilience, and to shape a truly sustainable future for all. We owe this to our children and grandchildren!

Thank you