President William Ruto is currently in Brazzaville, Republic of Congo, where he is participating in the ongoing summit of the Three Basins, Biodiversity Ecosystems, and Tropical Forests (S3B EBFT).

This important summit, which began on October 26, 2023, gathers leaders from 37 countries to address three main objectives: protecting and revitalizing tropical forests, advancing sustainable development, and strengthening international cooperation on climate change. Denis Sassou-Nguesso, the President of the Republic of Congo and Chair of the Congo Basin Climate Commission, is presiding over the conference.

Sassou-Nguesso stressed the urgency of global unity in response to the environmental and climate crisis, highlighting the need to preserve the 350 million hectares of tropical forests. These forests represent a massive investment, estimated at 1 trillion dollars by United Nations experts.

The summit’s participants primarily come from the Amazon, Congo, and Borneo-Mekong basins, regions that collectively oversee over 80 percent of the world’s tropical forests. Notably, summit leaders have already agreed to establish a global coalition dedicated to protecting and regenerating tropical forests.

President Ruto’s presence at the summit follows his role as the host of the inaugural Africa Climate Summit in Nairobi, where leaders committed to achieving a 50% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2030. President Ruto currently serves as the Climate Change Ambassador for Africa, appointed to the position by the African Union in January 2023. The summit aims to foster collaboration among leaders from tropical forest nations to safeguard their forests and address climate change challenges.