• Chief conservator of forests Julius Kamau on Wednesday led an aerial and ground tour of Nyanza conservancy, which covers Kisumu, Homa Bay, Migori, Siaya, Nyamira and Kisii to assess their vegetation cover.
Image: /Courtesy.
The Kenya Forest Service has plans to help counties with low forest cover plant more trees.
Chief conservator of forests Julius Kamau on Wednesday led an aerial and ground tour of Nyanza conservancy, which covers Kisumu, Homa Bay, Migori, Siaya, Nyamira and Kisii counties to assess their vegetation cover.
"My visit to this conservancy is to commend the good effort the service has demonstrated and also to assure my field officers of support from the headquarters towards increasing the national tree cover," he said.
Kamau was also in the region to check the status of conservation, management, and protection of forest resources.
Of the six counties, Siaya has the lowest forest cover of 0.42 per cent.
Kisii has a cover of 2.62 per cent, Kisumu (0.44 per cent), Homa Bay (2.59 per cent), Migori (0.84 per cent) and Nyamira (7.29 per cent).
"We went there to affirm our commitment towards addressing the challenges starting with public forests," Kamau said.
He cited encroachments and degradation as challenges facing some of the forests.
"We will strengthen community forest associations to be partners in protecting the forest," Kamau said.
He said he also found out how the conservancy's forest ecosystems are to identify opportunities and interventions that KFS will strengthen to increase forest cover.
Kamau assured the country that the prospects of attaining the 10 per cent forest cover are on course.
He said both state and non-state actors will be engaged towards the goal of achieving a 10 per cent national tree cover by 2022.
"We are preparing for long rains and Kenyans should join us," he said.
Kenya's forest cover is 7.2 percent. To reach 10 per cent, Sh48 billion is needed to plant tw0 billion trees.
The conservator engaged with both forest station managers, forest rangers manning the stations and communities living adjacent to the forests.
"The meetings sought to strengthen collective conservation efforts, revamp and motivate public participation in conservation of forest resources, and develop strategies that would enhance both community livelihood through local CFAs and also address some challenges that were noted," Kamau said.
He toured the Koguta Forest in Kisumu and noted that it plays a critical economic role for the nation as the host of the Sondu Power Station.
Image: Courtesy.
He underscored the importance of trees to human livelihood as a key driver of the national economy.
In Homa Bay, the team visited Kodera Forest where Kamau met station manager Josephat Makoha, KFS staff and Kodera CFA members.
Kamau said the station currently has a stock of 50,000 plantable mixed tree seedlings species at the KFS nursery.
He encouraged the locals to support KFS in conserving Kodera Forest which is a catchment area of River Awach that serves downstream communities.
The team also toured forest blocks within the county namely: Wire, Godjope, Asego, Urianda, Samanga, Rabuor, Ruri, Homa, and Gwasi Hills.
Kamau also toured Lambwe Forest station in Homa Bay county.
The forest is a water catchment area serving not just downstream communities, but also wildlife hosted at the Ruma National Park.
The national park is home to the critically endangered Roan antelopes. Only 15 animals of this species are left in the country.
Kamau paid a courtesy call on the park warden in charge of Ruma Bernard Chirchir.
The visit was in appreciation of the collaborative partnership between the two services in conservation, management, and protection of forest ecosystems which host Kenya's heritage of flora and fauna, and specifically at Lambwe region.
Kamau noted that the Lambwe Forest ecosystem is the catchment of three rivers serving the national park namely; Lambwe, Ruma, and River Onyenda.
He underscored the importance of collaborating towards conserving and restoring the forest through support in seedlings generation at the KFS tree nursery adjacent to the park.
Kamau commended the Kenya Wildlife Service for engaging local communities who also form part of the Lambwe CFA in scouting.
In Kisii county, the conservator also inspected the status of Nyangweta, Ndonyo, Insarie, and Ritumbe forest ecosystems.
The team also inspected Magina, Aroso, Otacho, Ombo, Nyatike, and Taken forest stations in Migori.