A standoff between the Kenya Forest Service (KFS) and the
Friends of Karura Forest (FKF) has cast uncertainty over conservation
programmes, community projects, and bursaries linked to Karura Forest, one of
Nairobi’s most visited urban green spaces.
KFS has moved to reassure the public that services at the
forest remain uninterrupted.
Visitors continue to access Karura for cycling, walking, and
other recreational activities.
In a statement, KFS said its staff, working alongside
members of the Community Forest Association (CFA), were maintaining normal
operations.
“All budgetary provisions as per the submitted annual work
plan and budget for 2025/2026 will be honoured and funded accordingly,” the
Service stated.
It added that Chief Conservator of Forests Alex Lemarkoko
had assured CFA employees that no jobs would be lost.
However, KFS also noted that some community workers had
failed to report to duty despite repeated calls to resume work.
At the heart of the dispute is the cancellation of FKF’s
partnership with its sister organisation, the Karura Forest Environmental
Education Trust (KFEET).
FKF has warned that
the fallout is jeopardising programmes that have long supported the community
and conservation work around Karura.
“When elephants fight, it is the grass that suffers,” FKF
said in a statement.
The organisation highlighted that the cancellation had
disrupted an environmental education programme serving 300 schoolchildren
weekly, bursary-funded bike shops, the Karura regeneration initiative, and
community contract work worth Sh2 million a month.
Civil society groups have since urged calm and dialogue.
In a separate appeal, Karura MCA Fiu Nifiu called on KFS and
FKF to de-escalate the row and pursue mediation in line with the Forest
Conservation and Management Act, 2016.
“Karura is our shared heritage; its well-being depends on cooperation, transparency, and mutual respect. With goodwill and a calm, organised process, these disputes can be resolved in the best interests of both the forest and the community,” the group noted.
Karura Forest has been regarded as a success story in
community-driven conservation, credited to a collaborative management model
involving KFS, local residents, and conservation partners. The current
tensions, however, have raised concerns about the sustainability of that model.
For now, operations remain open to the public, but the
uncertainty surrounding bursaries, nearly 200 community jobs, and long-running
forest regeneration projects underscores what is at stake if the dispute is not
resolved.
