Ruto, Guterres launch Sh44billion UN Gigiri expansion
President William Ruto and United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres are today expected to inaugurate the United Nations Nairobi Expansion Project at the United Nations Office at Nairobi in Gigiri, in a move set to cement Nairobi’s position as a major global diplomatic and development hub.
The Sh44 billion expansion project, approved by United Nations member states in December 2023 under Resolution 78/253, will involve the construction of a new conference facility and the upgrade of office infrastructure at the UN complex.
The project is estimated to cost about USD 340 million (approximately Sh44.2 billion), with USD 265.7 million earmarked for the conference facility and another USD 74.5 million allocated for the upgrading of office blocks.
During the ceremony, President Ruto and Guterres are expected to break ground for the new conference complex and officially inaugurate completed climate-smart office buildings within the Gigiri compound.
The redevelopment is projected to significantly increase Nairobi’s capacity to host major international meetings.
According to the United Nations, conference and meeting rooms at the facility will increase from 14 to 30, while delegate capacity will rise from 2,000 to 9,000 participants.
A new Assembly Hall with capacity for 1,600 delegates will also be constructed.
UN Under-Secretary-General and Director-General of the United Nations Office at Nairobi Zainab Hawa Bangura described the initiative as a defining moment for the UN presence in Africa.
“This investment aligns our presence with where global challenges — and solutions — are increasingly concentrated. Nairobi is not only a host city; it is a strategic centre for delivering the United Nations’ work in the 21st century,” she said ahead of Guterres’ visit.
The expansion is expected to elevate Nairobi into one of the UN’s most significant global hubs, reinforcing its status as the only UN headquarters in the Global South and potentially making it the third-largest UN duty station after New York and Geneva.
The Nairobi expansion has already seen agencies such as United Nations Children’s Fund, United Nations Population Fund and UN Women relocate some of their global operations to Nairobi, although their headquarters remain in New York.
Currently, Kenya hosts about 6,000 UN personnel, with nearly 5,000 based at the Gigiri complex under more than 80 offices managing operations across Somalia, Sudan, peacekeeping missions and Special Political Missions.
Guterres arrived in Nairobi on Sunday evening for the Africa Forward Summit 2026, where he was received at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport by Health Cabinet Secretary Aden Duale.
The two-day summit is being co-hosted by President Ruto and French President Emmanuel Macron and is expected to bring together more than 30 African Heads of State and Government alongside global leaders, policymakers and development partners.
Discussions at the summit will focus on sustainable development, economic cooperation, innovation, climate action, technology transfer and youth empowerment.
Mauritian Prime Minister Navinchandra Ramgoolam is among leaders who have already arrived in the country for the forum.
Separately, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees has committed an additional USD 11.2 million towards new office infrastructure within the Gigiri complex.
Following the launch ceremony, Guterres is expected to address regional and global issues affecting Africa, including conflicts in Sudan, South Sudan, eastern Democratic Republic of Congo and the Sahel region, which continue to fuel humanitarian crises and displacement.
The UN chief is also expected to renew calls for reforms to the United Nations Security Council, particularly on increasing African representation in global decision-making structures.
Other issues likely to feature in his remarks include global economic inequality, rising borrowing costs affecting African economies and the impact of geopolitical tensions in the Middle East on food security and economic stability.
