Community secures Sh16m to conserve Mt Elgon forest

Efforts to conserve Mount Elgon Forest received a major boost yesterday after local Community Forest Associations (CFAs) secured a Sh16 million grant to enhance their activities.

At least eight CFAs benefited, with each one of them getting Sh2 million from GEF-7, a donor organisation, to help promote their activities towards protecting the environment and conserving forest resources for the benefit of present and future generations.

The Chief Conservator of Forests, Alex Lemarkoko, witnessed the signing of an agreement between the groups, Forest Services and the government, at Mabanga Agricultural Centre in Bungoma County.

“We want to address livelihood issues, value chains, and conservation and ensure we restore water towers in the Mt Elgon ecosystem and landscape. It is going to focus on gazetted forests, which include protected areas and farmland. We are also looking at the value chain of certain food crops and those that empower communities economically, like coffee, which is going to be a focus crop within this region,” Lemarkoko noted.  

He exuded confidence in the community's ability to transform the Mt Elgon ecosystem through active participation in restoration efforts, adding that they are implementing an integrated landscape management project jointly with the community, county government, national government agencies, and donor agencies, FAO and GEF.

“We target eight forest stations and therefore eight CAFs. The project targets the restoration of 10,000 hectares of degraded land and aims to benefit over 60,000 people. The community will be responsible for producing 1.6 million seedlings of trees this year, and we will pay to produce and manage the nurseries and plant them at designated areas as they nurture them," said the official. 

He added, "This means the community has a role in restoration and is very much aligned with the 15 billion trees strategy championed by the President and also the bottom-up economic transformation agenda, which requires us to work directly with the beneficiary," Lemarkoko noted. 

He said the Kenya Forest Service remains committed to its mandate of sustainable forest management. "I urge all stakeholders to execute their respective responsibilities diligently for the sake of future generations," he noted, said the officer. 

While handing over the signed contracts to CFA leaders, symbolising the release of funds to support community-led restoration initiatives, Lemarkoko thanked development partners for their continued technical and financial support. 

“Under the agreements, CFAs are expected to raise, plant, and nurture 1.6 million tree seedlings annually, strengthening forest cover while enhancing livelihoods. 

Bungoma Deputy Governor Janepher Mbatiany affirmed the county's commitment to working with the community and called on communities to safeguard forests from illegal activities and embrace sustainable management practices. 

“The county will ensure that forests are properly protected and that the funds will be used transparently to achieve conservation activities,” Mbatiany noted. 

Pius Ndiwa, a community representative, stated that the recognition of CFAs by KFS demonstrates trust in local communities. 

He reiterated that the project will directly benefit forest-adjacent households and pledged full community support in working collaboratively with KFS to achieve restoration goals. 

“The project is aligned with the president’s bottom-up agenda and will enhance community involvement and support key to conservation in ensuring that Mt Elgon's degraded areas are restored and preserved,” Ndiwa noted. 

The ceremony also served as the official flag-off of seedling raising and restoration activities under the project, geared towards reinforcing the government's commitment to inclusive, community-driven conservation of the Mt. Elgon ecosystem.