Foresters back shamba system, say it worked before

A return to the shamba system will help reclaim degraded forests, the Forestry Society of Kenya has said.

Benjamin Wamugunda, the Forestry Society of Kenya chairman, said if the system is managed properly, it can help increase the forest cover in the country.

He said there are forest lands that are bare and if the shamba system is reintroduced, it can help reforest these areas.

Wamugunda gave the example of Arabuko Sokoke forest, which he said has thousands of acres that are still bare. 

Speaking during the annual dialogue and annual general meeting of the Forestry Society of Kenya members at Sea View Resort Malindi, he said land is a flow resource and if not used, the benefits go to waste.

“Nobody is saying that trees should be cut anyhow but we want bare land used,” he said.

Wamugunda, a research scientist at Kenya Forest Research Institute, said those who learned the shamba system from Kenya are the ones supplying timber to the country.

He said Kenya has enough land and there is no need to import timber.

Wamugunda said the shamba system was initially known as the squatter system whereby settlers brought in natives to the forest to squat and farm.

“By 1975 it was condemned by the Ndegwa Commission, then it was called the resident labourer system and it was at that time that things were changing it was given a bad name,” he said.

Wamugunda said the International Council for Research in Agro-Forestry (ICRAF) came to Kenya in 1978 because the country was planting trees through the system.

He said that is also how Kenya became the headquarters of ICRAF and now there is also the World Agro Forestry Centre.

Head of forestry conservation at the Ministry of Environment Alfred Gichu said the country needs to increase forest cover and invest in activities to support conservation.

Gichu said the shamba system can support communities residing in areas adjacent to forests.

 “Those of us who come from the climate space want to see a whole programme that speaks to the national efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, increased forest cover, sustainable forest management, conservation of stocks that are already there and that is what we are looking for at the end of the day," he said.

The two spoke after Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua on Saturday last week said the government was considering reviving the shamba system to boost food production.

“There was shamba system where residents could plant maize until the trees grew. We have made an order for wananchi to be allowed to cultivate in the forest for more food,” the DP said.

But on Wednesday, Gachagua said the media misquoted him on the shamba system issue.

"While in Baringo last week, I spoke about the government's intention to start an afforestation programme. I urge the media to report objectively," Gachagua said.

 "I meant the government will engage farmers to plant trees as they grow crops and then vacate once the trees have matured. We will work with farmers to do afforestation on gazetted reserves.”

Gachagua's recent remarks came after the debate on the shamba system elicited mixed reactions.

Conservationists were jittery following the depletion of forest resources when the system was allowed in early 1980s and 1990s.

Edited by A.N