UN Urges Investment in Air Pollution Solutions for Global Prosperity

Nairobi, Sep 7 (VOICE): The globe commemorated the fifth annual International Day of Clean Air for blue skies on Saturday. The day was marked by pleas for increased investment in clean air solutions as air pollution continues to pose significant public health, environmental, and economic challenges. 
 
Shockingly, over 99% of the global population is now breathing polluted air. This has resulted in more than eight million deaths annually, including over 700,000 children under five years old. It's worth noting that dirty air disproportionately affects vulnerable groups such as women, children, and older people. 
 
Air pollution has alarmingly become the second leading risk factor globally for premature death. It surpasses tobacco among adults and ranks second only to malnutrition among children below five years old. Despite this dire situation causing an estimated $8.1 trillion in health damages every year, less than one percent of international development funding is allocated towards combating it. 
 
UN Secretary-General António Guterres highlighted that apart from its toll on human health, "pollution is also choking economies and heating up our planet." He emphasized that tackling pollution adds fuel to the ongoing struggle against climate change. 
 
The UN General Assembly declared this day back in 2019 with a mission to advocate for clean air causes worldwide. Guided by this year's theme led by UNEP (the UN Environment Programme), calls are being amplified globally urging investments into #CleanAirNow initiatives aimed at safeguarding both human beings' future prosperity and planetary wellbeing. 
 
Guterres asserted that investing in clean air necessitates collaborative measures between governments and businesses around phasing out fossil fuel use, enhancing quality monitoring, enforcing stricter quality standards, promoting renewable energy source adoption, transitioning towards cleaner cooking methods, constructing sustainable transport systems alongside waste management models, and purifying supply chains while reducing harmful emissions, including methane gas. 
 
In light of Clean Air Day preparations held earlier last week, CCAC's launch of AQMx. This global air quality management platform, convened by UNEP, was initiated on September 5 as a response to nations' calls for more regional knowledge sharing and action towards improving overall air quality. 
 
UNEP's Executive Director Inger Andersen utilized her Clean Air Day message to urge for increased investment in solutions tackling air pollution across all societies. She also demanded an end to the violation of every person's basic right to breathe clean air. 
 
Andersen stressed that these measures require collective efforts ranging from international development initiatives down to individual lifestyle changes. 
 
The International Day of Clean Air for Blue Skyes saw various events globally: South Africa hosted a two-day conference while UNEP facilitated a webinar discussing how African cities can prevent waste open burning. 
 
Asia held high-level discussions featuring youth voices from across the continent alongside festivities at Beijing’s former steel mill site turned outdoor Olympic Games area aimed at combating local city-wide pollution levels. 
 
The silver lining is that it is possible to prevent and control air pollution, and individuals around the world are rising up against this crisis. Cities have managed drastic reductions in their local pollution levels, while countries have pledged commitments through the Global Methane Pledge towards cutting methane emissions—another potent pollutant contributing significantly towards global warming.