Eyebrows raised as RUTO skips COP29 Summit – You won’t believe who he has sent to represent Kenya in Azerbaijan

Sunday, November 10, 2024 - President William Ruto surprised everyone by announcing that he won’t attend this year’s Climate Summit, known as COP29, despite being a climate change advocate.

Instead, Ruto has opted to send Cabinet Secretary for the Ministry of Environment, Climate, and Forestry Aden Duale to represent him at the global summit slated for next week in Baku, Azerbaijan.

Sources from the State House confirmed the new development, as Ruto was initially meant to attend the United Nations conference.

Ruto’s intended sojourn to Azerbaijan would have been the third trip out of the country in a week after prior trips to South Sudan and Ethiopia. 

Since September 2024, Ruto has made eight trips outside the country. His frequent travels have drawn mixed reactions back home with many Kenyans expressing frustration over the President’s focus on international matters while pressing domestic concerns remain unresolved. 

Ruto was set to deliver an address in the first part of the high-level segment during the World Leaders Climate Action Summit (WLCAS) that is set to run from Tuesday, November 12, to Wednesday, November 13.  CS Duale now looks set to deliver the president's address on his behalf. 

The COP29 summit is set to run from Monday, November 11 to Friday, November 22 2024 with the theme being “Investing in a livable planet for all.” 

The main agenda is finance as the UN reiterates the continuous need to invest significant sums of money to drastically reduce greenhouse emissions and protect lives and livelihoods from the worsening impacts of climate change.

The Kenyan DAILY POST