Date and time: 26 August, 2016, Friday 10:00-12:00

Location: Nairobi, Kenya

Venue: Kenyatta University Conference Centre

On 26 August 2016, UNU-IAS/ Global RCE Service Centre will organize a side event on Strengthening the Role of African Regional Centres of Expertise to deliver the Sustainable Development Goals in Nairobi, Kenya prior to the Sixth Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD VI) on 27-28 August.

The event is jointly organized by the National Environment Management Authority (NEMA), RCE Greater Nairobi and the African RCE network. The RCE global network provides useful opportunities for implementing education for sustainable development (ESD) as a mechanism for achieving the sustainable development goals (SDGs). The RCE network was launched by the United Nations University (UNU) in 2005 and is coordinated by the RCE Service Centre at the UNU - Institute for the Advanced Study of Sustainability (IAS) in Tokyo, Japan. Designed as multi-stakeholder partnerships to address local and regional sustainable development challenges,

RCEs are playing a vital role in developing competences and capabilities needed for achieving the SDGs. This event explores ways of strengthening African RCEs as multi-stakeholder partnerships for scaling up innovation, resources and action to deliver the SDGs in local and regional contexts. The event aims to highlight and promote the role of ESD in achieving the SDGs at local and regional levels. It will bring together multi-stakeholder learning experiences and expertise on the implementation of ESD and the SDGs. The event will also showcase the work of the global RCE network on ESD.

This event will be held in English.

The 6th African RCE Conference, “Developing Capacities of African RCEs for the implementation of the Global Action Programme on ESD and the Achievement of Sustainable Development Goals”, held in Kenyatta University, Nairobi, hosted by RCE Greater Nairobi and NEMA in collaboration with other Kenyan RCEs on 24-25 August 2016 will be held prior to the side event. 

Registration for the side event

The side event is free and open to the public, but advanced registration has now been extended by 17 August 2016. You can register here.

All participants are requested to carry an identification document on the day of the event to access the venue.

Programme:

10:00 – 10:15 Opening remarks

• Vice-Chancellor Kenyatta University

• Goolam Mohamedbhai (Regional Advisor for African RCEs and Former Secretary-General of the Association of African Universities)

• David Ongare (Coordinator of African RCEs) 10:15 – 10:30 Key note presentation

• "Strengthening multi-stakeholder partnerships to achieve the SDGs in Africa" (UNDP Representative, TBC)

10:30 – 11:30 Panel Discussion

Panellists:

• Akpezi Ogbuigwe (Regional Advisor for African RCEs, Former Head of Environmental Education and Training at the United Nations Environment Programme)

• Rob O'Donoghue (Director of the Environmental Learning Research Centre at Rhodes University)

• Ayub Macharia (Director NEMA)

• Dr Mu’azu Babangida Aliyu (Former Governor, Niger State)

• UNESCO Representative (TBC)

• Youth Representative (TBC)

11:30 – 12:00 Open Discussion

12:00 Closing

A summary of the event can be found here.

The full report and outcomes of the 6th RCE Conference can be found here.