The Nairobi Convention Clearinghouse is destined to be a sustainable ‘data shop’, providing accurate and relevant data and information for improved management and protection of the coastal and marine environment in the in the Western Indian Ocean region. The Nairobi Convention Clearinghouse falls within the auspicies of the Nairobi Convention.

The Nairobi Convention provides a mechanism for regional cooperation, coordination and collaborative actions, and enables the Contracting Parties to harness resources and expertise from a wide range of stakeholders and interest groups towards solving interlinked problems of the coastal and marine environment.

In accordance with Decision 4/8 of the Contracting Parties to the Nairobi Convention, the Clearinghouse goal is to improve the coordination and participation of the Western Indian Ocean countries in implementing the Nairobi Convention. UNEP is supporting the implementation of national data and information clearinghouses nodes in Comoros, Kenya, France-Reunion, Madagascar, Mauritius, Mozambique, Seychelles, Somalia, South Africa and Tanzania.