Kenyan leader warns against rampant destruction of forests

Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta on Saturday warned against wanton destruction of forests and announced a raft of measures aimed at curbing the rampant damage. Kenyatta said wanton destruction of forests has been occasioned by encroachment, irregular allocation of forest land, breakdown of professional forestry practice and undervaluation of forest products from state forests. "Let us join in the global war against climate change, whose negative impacts have been felt far and wide in terms of increased human diseases, declining agricultural yields and reduced water stream flows," he said during the official launch of the Green Schools Program in central Kenya. The program, whose theme is "Green Schools and Commercial Tree Growing for a Green Economy", will through tree planting as an entry point demonstrate simple technological interventions for sustainable forest protection. Forest governance in Kenya has been a major challenge in the past before the enactment of the Forest Act 2005. Kenya forests had faced serious challenges ranging from illegal excisions, illegal timber harvesting, and illegal cultivation and grazing, poor management and even attack by the pests and diseases. Officials said challenges of logging and forest excisions can be stopped through harmonization of the members' states law and policies that govern the forest. Among the measures Kenyatta said will be adopted to reverse destruction of forests include creation and strengthening of Forest Conservation Committees and Community Forest Associations to instil a sense of ownership on communities. "These community-based structures are at the forefront of forest protection and play a watchdog role, often whistle blowing whenever threats to forest conservation are detected, and I thank them for this," he said. The president said the structures being put in place will ensure participatory and sustainable management of forest resources as an important aspect in reducing conflicts among communities. Kenyatta said a comprehensive wall-to-wall forest resource assessment informing the nation that tree cover now stands at just under 7 percent has been completed. "This and a further in-depth inventory of all gazetted industrial forest plantations sets the stage for investors to engage in the sector, thereby generating much needed jobs and creating wealth, while enhancing sustainable management of these forests," he said. Kenya's forest cover is currently estimated at 6.9 percent below the UN recommended target of 10 percent. The country has experienced significant loss of forests due to human encroachment, urbanization and climate change impacts. To reverse forest degradation, the government has initiated far- reaching interventions including national reforestation programs, zoning of key forestland alongside a legal requirement for farmers to set aside 10 percent of their land for trees.