Eunice Njoroge, Murang'a County Forests Conservator planting a tree in Kimakia forest in the Aberdare ranges on November 11, 2025
A multi-stakeholders team has planted over 40,000 tree seedlings at Kimakia forest on the Murang’a side of the vast Aberdare forest.
The team led by acting County Commissioner Charles Muriithi included the Kenya Defence Forces, Kenya Forest Service, National Environment Management Authority, administrators and Dedan Kimathi University and Women in Climate Change Organization (WICCO) among others.
The pine seedlings were planted in an area where mature trees were harvested in the recent past in the forest that serves as a crucial water tower.
The forest is the source of some of the main tributaries of Tana, Athi and Ewaso Nyiro rivers that play a critical role in provision of water and power in the country.
Muriithi said the exercise was part of the national government’s plan to plant 15 billion trees by 2032, a project he said will have a significant impact in the future of the country as it will help mitigate the effects of climate change.
The commissioner appealed to residents who farm in the forest under the Community Forest Association (CFA) to ensure they tend to the trees until they mature to ensure the efforts don’t go to waste.
Residents of Gataka-ini area join other stakeholders in planting trees in Kimakia forest in the Aberdare ranges on November 11, 2025“We have come together, from the assistant chief to all the organisations present to participate in this exercise because we know the role trees play in our well-being,” he said.
The County Forest Conservator Eunice Njoroge said the county has a tree cover of 27.8 per cent but targets to hit 35 per cent by 2032.
She however appealed to farmers and residents to ensure they consult the KFS office before embarking on tree planting for guidance on the ideal planting areas for specific trees.
Njoroge asked residents to plant bamboo and indigenous trees for conservation and exotic ones for timber and other commercial uses.
“Its important for farmers to ensure they also plant fruit trees for their use, food security and as a source of income,” she said.
Dedan Kimathi Foundation’s CEO Everline Kimathi said her father, Dedan Kimathi, and other freedom fighters used the dense cover of the Aberdare forest to hide and fight the colonialists.
A multi-stakeholders team during a tree planting exercise in Kimakia forest in the Aberdare ranges.“Why can’t we use trees to hide from climate change? I have a philosophy that we should bring Aberdare forest to our homes by planting as many trees as possible where one can hide from the sun when it’s too hot.”
WICCO chairperson Diana Muthoni appealed to Kenyans to take tree planting less as a task and more as part of their lives.
Muthoni said once Kenyans understand the role trees play in their day to day lives, they will not hesitate to plant them in any space available.
“We are talking about clean air, cooler temperatures and sustainable water supply and improved income,” she said, urging stakeholders to ensure they upscale tree planting activities.
Robert Gakure, a journalist, said journalists experience first-hand the devastating effects of climate change as they cover stories on family ravaged by drought, poverty and floods.
This, he said, has prompted Murang’a-based journalists to start undertaking tree planting exercises aimed at raising residents’ resilience to weather extremities and creating awareness.
