Nairobi, 20 feb ( EFE).-the European Union ( EU) and the African Union ( au) support for the programme of the United Nations for the environment ( UNEP) to become an agency of the UN, said today the executive director of that agency, Achim Steiner.
“The great majority of the countries has asked strengthen UNEP,” said Steiner at a press conference, on the first day of the XII meeting Special of the Board of Directors of UNEP and the Global Forum of Ministers of environment, held in Nairobi.
Representatives from more than 100 countries – including 80 ministers, today began a three day meeting to set positions to the United Nations Conference on sustainable development (RÃo+20), to be hosted by Brazil next June.
One of the issues to be addressed in RÃo+20 is within the international environmental governance, including the possible transformation of UNEP, based in the Kenyan capital, an agency of the United Nations more capable of action.
Steiner said today that the EU “has declared its support” to make this idea a reality.
The head of UNEP also indicated that au, which integrates to 54 countries, said its support to “raise ranking this institution as part of environmental governance”.
In this regard, the Kenya President, Mwai Kibaki, recalled today, during the opening ceremony of the meeting, the “common position” of the AU for “transforming UNEP into one agency specialized UN”.
To date, however, countries such as Brazil, to be hosted by RÃo+20, and United States, have not shown publicly a great enthusiasm before a possible conversion of UNEP in an agency.
In this regard, Steiner pointed out that it is to Brazil its “position” on the issue, although he said evidence that the Latin American country, “as host country, considered this issue as a key issue”.
However, European sources close to the negotiating process assured Efe that Brazil not today expressed great interest on this issue, during the intervention of the Brazilian delegation in the plenary of the Nairobi meeting.
Currently, the UN Environment Programme lacks executive capacity and independent budget, since their decisions will rise to the General Assembly of the United Nations, who can adopt them or scupper them.
A difference of agencies such as the World Health Organization (who), the decisions of the UNEP can not become international law. EFE
