Kakamega farmers urged to plant trees to mitigate climate change

A social enterprise based in Kakamega has called on farmers in the Western region to embrace Agro-forestry in a bid to mitigate worldwide hazards of climate change and global warming.

Speaking to the press during a routine brief and launch of agricultural inputs supply for the long rains, Tupande by One Acre Fund organisation's communications officer Ms Karigu Ekumbo held that it was important for farmers to plant trees alongside their crops to increase the forest cover in the Country.

“In line with the clarion call by President Willam Ruto to increase the forest cover by 30 percent in the next 10 years, we have come up with an elaborate plan to avail tree seedlings to all our farmers so that they can take part in this noble activity," she said.

"We want to be part of the climate change mitigation in this country.” 

In 2022, during the launch of the National Program for Accelerated Forestry and Rangelands Restoration, the Government raised the tree cover target from 10 per cent to 30 per cent.

The goal is to restore 10.6 million hectares of degraded land by planting 15 billion trees by 2032.

The One Acre Fund has more than 800,000 farmers in the Western, Nyanza, Central and Rift Valley regions.

The officer said during these long rains, smallholder farmers can plant up to at least 10 trees each with a guarantee of 90 % survival chances which will be a big boost to the Kenyan forest cover.

The social enterprise offers farmers a complete bundle of inputs and services on credit, including the delivery of hybrid seeds and fertiliser, and training on how to maximise crop yields and minimise post-harvest losses.

"We are also dedicated to making sure every family in Kenya is food sufficient," Karigu added

She said it was paramount to empower smallholder farmers since agriculture in Kenya accounts for 51 % of Kenya’s GDP, with smallholder farmers accounting for 78% of agricultural production.

“This means that increasing agricultural productivity not only improves the country’s food security but goes in tandem with poverty alleviation,” she explained

Karigu further stated that agricultural productivity is significantly improved by the organization ensuring farmers’ access to farm inputs and financing for the same is uninterrupted.

“We shall also make sure that alongside growing crops, our farmer groups do the tree nurseries from scratch until the trees are transplanted through our training and guidance from our field officers,” she reiterated