Cheboiwo graduated from Moi University in 1985 and joined Kefri as a research assistant before doing his Master's in Australia from 1988-91.
He later pursued PhD at Moi University from 1999 to 2003.
Cheboiwo, who is the current CEO, is set to retire early this year. He says he has given his best to the development of Kenya’s forest sector.
He spoke to Environment and Science reporter Gilbert Koech.
What were your first assignments in Kefri?
Most of the things we were dealing with are technical forest issues, such as how to grow trees, manage plantations and conserve the natural forest.
There was very little understanding of society's interest in forestry, and that was one of the tasks I started looking into.
First, I look at the economics of forestry, which I worked with the forest department to develop parameters for measuring work productivity, and later on looked at socioeconomics, which was a new area.
The area looks at the society, needs and interests in terms of needs in relation to forestry and how to address these needs without affecting the integrity and sustainability of forest resources.
I discovered that policy issues and legislations were not well understood by scientists and, therefore, we could not lobby and give appropriate inputs to their development
Did you find the gaps?
I discovered that policy issues and legislations were not well understood by scientists and, therefore, we could not lobby and give appropriate inputs to the development of policies and legislative processes to address forestry matters.
I diverted away from technical forestry issues to issues related to forestry and people.
I started a division of the research area of socio-economic policy and governance that was way back in 1986.
This particular research area has now grown to 18 scientists. We have one of the most developed socioeconomic policy and governance research science in the entire East African region.
I can move out of this institute without any disruption of activities because we have very strong scientists in all areas I have done in this particular research institute for almost 40 years I have been here.
In Kefri, I have worked in all three areas. I worked in the headquarters and later moved to dryland to start a research programme in Kitui.
Which areas were not adequately given attention?
The dryland research programme was a new area where there was minimal concrete and focused research in the dryland, and I had to start from scratch.
Most of the foresters are trained in highland forest plantations and natural forests.
Dryland has its own resources, and that is where I started.
To start this, the support of the Japanese International Corporation came in.
Jica supported research in the dry lands because it was a new area.
It took me almost two years to convince them that research is the foundation of any development of forestry in dry land.
We were able to undertake one of the largest and most extensive forest research in dry land in Africa.
Which species has Kefri introduced?
We introduced 88 species from various parts of the country and overseas with similar conditions for dry lands with the potential to grow.
Out of the 88, we were able to screen and narrow down to 12 potential species and now, we have moved further to work on seven to eight species.
We have escalated four species for purposes of improvement development and we are now working on two on first and second-generation improvement.
Melia volkensii, Acacia mearnsii, Terminalia brownii, Tamarindus indica, and quite a number of other species are the ones we are now working on promoting for commercials.
Melia volkensii (Mukau) is a multipurpose, fast-growing tree species that produces high-value timber in rotations of between 10 and 18 years. It is, therefore, a candidate species for investment in dry lands.
We are demonstrating that they can grow and do better in the dry land for purposes of adoption by investors or individual farm holdings.
In the dry land, we have Melia Volkensii species, which is a very good timber species that we have worked on since 1985.
The species is now in second-generation improvement breeding and it is the only dry land species that has reached that stage because in most of the years, Kefri has concentrated on highland species such as pine, Cyprus, eucalyptus and so on.
We have collected germ pluses from over 109 across Kenya and Somalia to get the best for wider ecological zonation of the country, and we have tested them from Kitui, Kibwezi to the depth of Taita Taveta to see the spread and capacity to adapt in dry land, and we have moved to the Coast.
Quite a number of countries have also developed interests, such as Ethiopia, Tanzania, Uganda and Nigeria, and are requesting to get improved seeds, and we have dispatched some of these seeds to some of these countries.
People have confidence in the species. Currently, we are working on three species apart from that.
We are working on Cordia Africana (Muringa), which has a lot of potential and diversity in its products pod sizes, seed numbers in each pod, different market niches and also the leaves.
We want to know those that produce the leaves so that we can know different market niches for investors.
We want to know the species that produces a lot of leaves for the vegetative market, and the pods for oils if we are interested in them.
If you are interested in the seeds, there are those that have long pods and they have a lot of seeds.
Which other species are you targeting?
We are now working on mapping Tamarindus indica as they are becoming a very important species in the global markets as part of the natural products as 10,000 metric tonnes are traded globally and Thailand and India dominates.
We are trying to bring Kenya into this particular grid.
We are trying to map Tamarindus indica diversity in the country from West Pokot, Baringo, Tharaka Nithi and Ukambani area, up to the coastal region if they have the same taste range.
According to preliminary information from communities, there could be more than three tastes.
We will then compare those ones which are globally traded if they are in tandem or not.
If they are, then we can choose those ones with taste, which are now preferred in the global market.
If not, I will be introducing improved variety from Thailand and India for commercial producers in this country to access what has already been globally tested as we try to improve or look at what we have in this country.
Are you also working on sandalwood?
Stakeholders have been struggling since 2007 to try to have sandalwood as one of the marketable products or options to grow in dryland.
Kefri has been undertaking research for East Africa Sandalwood for 20 years, and we have not made a lot of marks because of the challenges we are facing.
This species is very unique, the seeds are infected at the early stage of development.
Viable seeds are very low and this has become a challenge, but Kefri is almost reaching the tail end of it.
Stakeholders have been waiting for us to access what is working globally.
Since 2019, we have introduced Indian sandalwood, which is already grown globally.
The attributes in terms of the quality of the oil it can produce in the market are well known.
Australia is the leading country in terms of plantation of sandalwood, with almost 43,000 hectares, and the first patch was harvested in 2016 after 15-17 years of growing.
We are now positioning the country and the private sector has taken in. We have almost 44 farms experimenting with Indian sandalwood across the country from Laikipia, Kibwezi, Kerio Valley and Baringo.
There is a private sector player now who for the first time has raised 200,000 seedlings to sell.
Kefri is also producing almost 5,000 seedlings per year, which are given to farmers to demonstrate across the country, and we are also building our seed stocks for future use.
What have you done to promote farm forestry in the country?
If farmers are to plant trees, these trees must be competitive for land use.
The first thing that I have had to look at is competitive land use analysis.
In my Master's, I specialised in the cost-benefit analysis of forest investment. From that, I have been able to undertake a cost-benefit analysis of various forest-based enterprises, such as pulp wood, pole wood, industrial fuel and charcoal.
I looked at the revenue trees can earn as compared to maize, tea and other crops, and we have published a book on the same.
I also looked at the highest-value markets that exist for these products as well as market dynamics.
Since 1999, I have been undertaking national market surveys across the country, tree products in the markets, the source and prices.
Kenya has been importing between 36,000 to 52,000 metric tonnes of wood per year from Congo.
How many publications have you done so far?
I can’t count the number of publications, but I can say there are over 400 publications I have done in referred journals, conference papers, seminars, manuals, guidelines, pamphlets, extension information and policy briefs.
