•In 2019, Kipchoge proved that he is indeed the Greatest of All Time after becoming the first man to run a marathon in less than two hours.
•Kipchoge’s sterling performance in Vienna Austria saw messages pour in from across the globe as fans celebrated the historic feat.
The Greatest Marathoner of All time, Eliud Kipchoge has declared war against climate change warning that its impacts are running faster than humanity.
In 2019, Kipchoge proved that he is indeed the Greatest of All Time after becoming the first man to run a marathon in less than two hours.
Kipchoge’s sterling performance in Vienna Austria saw messages pour in from across the globe as fans celebrated the historic feat.
“We have seen and experienced the negative impacts of climate change from very cold seasons to the absence of rains. There is no doubt that climate change is running faster than all of us. We need to do more, do it faster and most importantly do it better,” Kipchoge said on Friday.
Kaptagat forest remains one of the most important natural resources in the country as the forest is a training ground of global significance.
Renowned athletes who have found it a perfect spot for high-altitude training, have gone ahead to become world champions, earning the forest even a bigger crest.
Kaptagat is one of the forests in the North Rift conservation area that covers a total of 5,663.56 hectares.
However, years of degradation and deforestation continue to threaten this important ecosystem, threatening its biodiversity and glory in the process.
In 2019, Kipchoge signed an MoU with Kenya Forest Service to adopt 50.8 hectares of Kaptagat forest. Under the MOU, Eliud Kipchoge was to rehabilitate and restore the degraded site and later develop the site by establishing a training track and ecotourism site.
WWF-Kenya through the UK-Pact and Trillion trees and WWF-UK has donated Sh 8,940,000 million to the Eliud Kipchoge Foundation to facilitate the fencing as well as restoration of the adopted 50.8 hectares (125.52934 acres).
Kipchoge on Friday mobilised the athletes, the private sector and the government to reverse the threats facing the critical ecosystem during the 6th edition of Kaptagat Forest's annual Tree planting.
During the event, 250,000 tree seedlings were planted and 40,000 fruit trees were distributed.
He said that he is keen to spread his conservation efforts to all 47 counties.
“We trust that we shall achieve this dream. I am calling on all like-minded sponsors to partner with us to make Kenya green and make our country happy,” he urged.
Environment PS Dr Chris Kiptoo, Kenya Forest Research Institute Director Dr Joshua Cheboiwo, Kenya Water Towers Agency CEO Prof. Julius Tanui, National Environmental Trust Fund CEO Samson Toniok, and Dr Benjamin Kinyili represented Kenya Forest Service Chief Conservator Julius Kamau during the event.
World Wide Fund for Nature Head of Conservation Programmes Jackson Kiplagat, Absa Bank Chief Strategy Officer Moses Muthui, WWF-Kenya head of resource mobilization
Joyce Isiaho and Jambo Jet CEO Karanja Ndegwa were present.
Kipchoge said they are putting all their minds into conservation and education.
“When the country is green, its citizens are actually happy,” he said.
Kipchoge said the community adjacent to the forest must also benefit.
PS Kiptoo lauded the concerted effort by both public and the private sector which he attributed to the increased national forest cover from 5.5 in 2013 to 8.8 in 2022.
The National Forest Resources Assessment Report 2021 shows that Kenya’s forest cover now stands at 8.8 per cent from 7.2 per cent in 2018.
“Our tree cover is now way ahead of our constitutional target of 10 per cent as we are now at 12.3 per cent,” Kiptoo said.
The six-month assessment is the first to ever analyse Kenya’s tree cover, which is now at 12.3 per cent.
Kiptoo said Kenyans have played a huge role in the conservation and protection of the environment by growing trees and rehabilitation of degraded lands and the restoration of the ecosystems in an endeavour to increase our national forest cover.
Kiptoo said the Ministry in collaboration with stakeholders was implementing the National Tree Growing Strategy that supports environmental restoration initiatives where county governments and community engagement were critical.
The PS said KEFRI’s capacity has been enhanced from sic seed production centres to 18 nationally.
Kiptoo and his Regional Development Authority and Northern Corridor counterpart Dr Belio Kipsang launched the fencing and Re-afforestation of the Degraded 50.8 Hectares of Kaptagat Forest, Adopted by Kipchoge.
The rehabilitation exercise of the degraded area is being funded by Trillion Tree, UK- Pack and WWF - Kenya.
The two-kilometre fence will protect the adopted forest block.
The 6th edition of the event will see over 250,000 seedlings planted, to rehabilitate various sections of the forest namely Kaptagat, Penon, Sabor, Kessup and Kipkabus forest stations.
The total size of restored degraded forest land is 1, 277 hectares with, over 1.5 million indigenous trees planted.
Muthui said Absa Bank has committed to planting 10 million tree seedlings under the Bank’s flagship project dubbed “10 million trees and seedlings in five years.
“As a bank, we are part of the private sector towards making sure that we are financing green energy going forward,” he said.
Muthui said climate change leads to things like droughts and famine, things that affect agriculture which is financed by banks.
“It is connected that is why we have to be careful and concerted to make sure that we are involved in managing climate change,” he said.
The project will be undertaken in partnership with the Ministry of Environment to support the national agenda of enhancing the county’s forest cover.
Muthui said the bank has donated Sh 3 million to support the rehabilitation and conservation of the Kaptagat Forest.
Jambo Jet CEO Ndegwa said they have plans to curb emissions.
“As to International Air Transport Association (IATA), we should be at net zero,” he said.
Ndegwa said within the next 10 years, they will do at least two million tree seedlings as part of their contribution to dealing with greenhouse gas emissions.
The CEO said the airline will continuously adopt technology as part of its ambitious plans to curb emissions.
“The other concerted efforts are to join hands in environmental conservation and we have always been trying to contribute towards tree planting initiatives in areas we fly to net off what we have done,” he said.
Ndegwa said they for instance fly to Eldoret 24 times a week from Nairobi and seven times from Mombasa.
“Our work is to make sure that we are supporting in whatever way that we can come in working closely with stakeholders such as Eldoret Water and Sanitation Company (ELDOWAS) for a long time period,” he said.
Ndegwa said their annual target is to target at least 10,000 trees every year in Eldoret.
Jambo jet also supports tree planting initiatives in other areas of the county such as Kisumu and Mombasa and Nairobi.
Kiplagat said communities adjacent to the forest will continue benefiting from the forest.
“With the help of the Participatory Forest Management Plan, the Community Forest Association and the Kenya Forest Service will work on a formula in which the community can access grass in the area for livestock. Communities will also be able to practice beekeeping within the enclosed forest area to generate income,” he said.
He said that WWF-Kenya was also engaging the community in other projects that include a water project and low-cost biogas solutions.
Kiplagat said the biogas project which is part of community livelihood aimed at reducing the dependency on forest resources will go a long way in protecting forest resources.
Those with biogas will however have to practice zero grazes, a move that will also significantly reduce the number of cows owned by the community meaning that there will be less encroachment of forest resources by the destructive livestock.