The Kenya Forest Service has issued a stern warning to illegal loggers, emphasizing that they will face strict and uncompromising consequences.
Chief Conservator of Forests, Alex Lemarkoko, on Friday, urged foresters and forest rangers not to engage in harassment but to guarantee that these individuals are subjected to the full extent of the law.
"Deal with lawbreakers accordingly. No one is allowed to destroy forests and their vegetation. Do not harass them once you arrest them. Let them face the full force of the law," he directed.
Lemarkoko led a team of KFS staff in planting 5,015 trees at the Matathia block in the Uplands forest, located in Lari constituency, Kiambu county.
Accompanying him were two deputy chief conservators, Beatrice Mbula and Charity Munyasia, along with other notable figures such as Kiambu ecosystem conservator Thomas Kiptoo and Uplands forester Isaac Waweru, among other senior KFS officials.
Expanding on the conservation efforts, the Chief Conservator of Forest highlighted the challenges faced by KFS in conducting effective patrols due to a shortage of foresters and rangers.
Expressing gratitude, the chief conservator acknowledged the support from President William Ruto's government, specifically the commitment to addressing the staffing issues by considering the addition of more foresters and rangers to the service.
He also applauded the KFS board for promoting 1,565 officers who had stagnated at the same level they had been working with for over 20 years, regardless of their competency.
Lemarkoko therefore directed them to embark on patrols to ensure no idlers are basking in the forests.
A member of Uplands Community Forest Association Nancy Wanja thanked Lemarkoko for ordering patrols revealing that bhang sellers were hiding in the forests during the day.
"Some activities happens there. This is the time some loggers find to check on trees that can steal. We shall assist the KFS where we can to ensure order" Wanja said.
Lemarkoko noted that they must improve the forests where the government wants to plant 15 billion trees by 2032.
He highlighted that KFS aims at planting 300 million trees this year.
KFS partners, accompanying the Earthlungs staff, expressed their commitment to the tree planting and growth initiative.
Solomon Kipkoech, the director of Earthlungs, highlighted that KFS had established a platform to facilitate collaboration and support for both Earthlungs and the Community Forest Associations (CFAs).
He emphasized that their objective is to assist the government in reaching its target of achieving a 30 percent tree cover by 2032.
Additionally, Kipkoech mentioned that they aim to raise awareness within the community through CFAs, educating them about the positive impact of tree cultivation in the country.
Last year in November, the government led Kenyans in a tree planting exercise that saw the planting of more than 150 million trees.
Interior CS Kithure Kindiki had declared November 13, 2023 a public holiday and urged the public to get involved in tree growing countrywide.
The exercise is part of Kenya’s Landscape and Ecosystem Restoration Programme–Towards the Growing of 15 Billion Trees.
President William Ruto presided over the inaugural National Tree Planting Day, joined by First Lady Rachel Ruto.
The President presided over the planting of more than 150,000 trees at Kiu Wetland in Makindu, Makueni County.
Cabinet Secretaries and governors led the tree planting in all 47 counties where all Kenyan citizens and the general public were expected to participate.
In support of this endeavour, the Kenya Forestry Research Institute (KEFRI) and Kenya Forest Service (KFS) made available 150 million tree seedlings distributed across all 47 counties.
The renewed efforts reflect Kenya’s commitment to achieving the United Nations-recommended minimum of 10 per cent forest cover per country, a target enshrined in national law.
Despite falling short of the initial goal to surpass the 10 per cent mark by 2022 during former President Uhuru Kenyatta’s administration, the national forest cover has increased to 8.8 per cent from 5.9 per cent in 2018, according to the National Forest Resources Assessment (NFRA) report released in 2022.