The state is making losses running into billions as matured trees in plantations continue to rot.
Forest plantations in the country currently cover about 335,000 acres of gazetted reserves.
Most plantations are located in five major water towers; Mt Kenya, Aberdares, Mau Forest Complex, Cherangani Hills and Mt Elgon.
Harvesting of matured trees from plantations has ceased since 2018 when authorities imposed a moratorium on logging, which was one of their biggest sources of revenue for the state and the Kenya Forest Service.
A 90-day ban on logging was initially imposed on February 24, 2018, and later extended to November 24.
It was again extended for a year to facilitate sector reforms.
The ban restricted the extraction of timber from all public and community forests.
The move was meant to give KFS more time to fully implement new measures to protect forests.
The ban was arrived at following the findings of a task force that had been constituted by the government to inquire into forest resource management and logging activities.
The task force said the board and the management of KFS had been unable to “stem and in some instances have directly participated in, abated and systematised rampant corruption and abuse of office.”
“The Kenya Forest Service has institutionalised corruption and the system is replete with deep-rooted corrupt practices, lack of accountability and unethical behaviour,” the report said.
The task force noted that illegal logging of indigenous trees was a major threat to forests and was rampant in key forest areas.
In September 2018, KFS said all saw millers were required to undergo e-registration as a new requirement for pre-qualification for logging in state plantations.
KFS said the youth, women and persons living with disability were also encouraged to participate in the e-registration.
They announced the move as part of solutions to streamlining business operations and addressing challenges that had bedeviled the sector.
In November 2020, Environment Cabinet Secretary Keriako Tobiko partially lifted the ban.
“Having considered the recommendations of both the board of management of the Kenya Forest Service and the multi-agency team on mapping, verification and valuation of mature and over-mature forest plantations," Tobiko said.
"The government has decided that the moratorium on logging in public and community forests imposed by the government since 2018 shall continue.
"However, it shall be varied or modified to allow for harvesting and disposal by KFS of mature and over-mature forest plantations for an area not exceeding 5,000 hectares."
The CS said the harvesting and disposal of forest plantation materials will be supervised by a multi-agency team and that the process was to be done in an open, transparent and accountable manner that ensures value for money.
“The details and particulars of the forest areas to be harvested and the terms and conditions applicable thereto including replanting conditions shall be published in due course,” Tobiko said.
Tobiko announced the partial lifting of the moratorium and announced that a multiagency team had been put in place to ensure transparency.
However, there has been infighting and bad blood between members of the multi-agency team.
The technical experts from KFS feel that their expertise was being taken for granted.
In June last year, KFS announced fresh conditions that saw millers must meet before being licensed.
The new tough conditions sparked protests from more than 800 saw millers who opposed the new requirements.
Saw millers' said the conditions to qualify for the logging tenders were too harsh, including a requirement that they must have minimum balances of between Sh1 million and Sh10 million in their bank accounts.
The millers, most of whom are small-scale said the set conditions are unrealistic and that they were meant to block them.
They said the ban on logging had collapsed and rendered more than 10,000 people jobless.
The saw millers had also gone for loans before the ban to develop their mills by purchasing machinery including lorries and tractors.
They also said before the ban they had paid more than Sh300 million to KFS for logging and they want the money refunded.
Millers have since moved to court to challenge some of the conditions by KFS.
Saw millers organising secretary John Kosgei on Thursday termed the set conditions as tough.
KFS normally plants eucalyptus trees away from water bodies as they consume a lot of water.
When trees mature, the KFS carries out an audit and its plantation team marks the trees for sale to the registered saw millers who are about 800.
Buyers deposit money in a National Treasury account and are issued receipts.
Millers take the receipts to forest station officers and harvest the mature trees under supervision.
KFS protects 6.4 million acres of gazetted forests and another 420 million acres under counties.
(Edited by Tabnacha O)
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