By Tony Wafula
Over 200,000 fruit and indigenous tree seedlings were planted on Friday at Kiptogot Forest Station in Mt Elgon, Trans Nzoia County, as part of ongoing efforts to conserve the ecosystem and enhance climate resilience.
The initiative is a collaborative effort between the Kenya Forest Service (KFS), Britam Foundation, local schools, the community, and the Jumbo Charge Trust. Bungoma County Forest Conservator Erick Abungu stated that Bungoma County aims to plant 19.3 million trees within the Mt Elgon ecosystem, public institutions, and homesteads to mitigate the effects of climate change in the region.
Speaking during the World Mazingira Day celebrations, held alongside the tree-planting exercise, Ambrose Tabani, a CEO within the Britam Group, said the partnership to conserve the ecosystem aligns with President William Ruto’s call to plant 15 billion trees over the next ten years.
He noted that Britam intends to plant 60 million trees within five years to support the government’s climate restoration agenda. “We have already begun the planting exercise in Mt Elgon and nearby schools. Our goal is to plant 200,000 trees at Kiptogot Forest Station on this Mazingira Day,” Tabani said.
He added that the organisation aims to capitalise on the short rainy season to support seedling growth and plans to continue planting during every rainy season until the 60-million-tree target is achieved. “This is not the end. We shall keep returning to plant more trees in this forest until we achieve our national target,” he affirmed.
Tabani further revealed plans to identify other degraded water catchment areas across the country and work with local communities and schools to expand conservation efforts. “We started with Mt Elgon because of our partnership with the Jumbo Charge Trust. In the future, we plan to bring more partners on board to achieve even greater impact,” he said.
He noted that Britam also collaborated with nearby schools to plant fruit trees, which will provide nutritional benefits to pupils. “Involving children in such activities nurtures them to become future conservators,” he remarked, adding that each participating school is responsible for maintaining its planted trees.
Kiptogot Forest Station Manager Marvin Omondi said the forest forms part of the larger Mt Elgon Forest Reserve, a transboundary ecosystem shared by Bungoma and Trans Nzoia counties. He added that, during the Mazingira Day event, fruit trees were also planted at Lutaso Friends Primary School. Omondi noted that Kiptogot Forest, which spans 10,243 hectares, is approximately 58 per cent natural forest and serves as a major water tower in the country.
“Illegal grazing and logging remain some of the biggest challenges affecting the forest,” he said. “Being adjacent to the national park, there are also instances of game damage, as there is no clear barrier between the forest and the park.”
The conservator added that the forest station continues to work closely with local communities to rehabilitate the water tower. Elijah Kamau, Secretary of the Kiptogot Community Forest Association, stated that the community collaborates with KFS in tree-planting efforts but faces a shortage of resources to support afforestation activities.
He added that the community operates through various groups engaging in income-generating activities, such as beekeeping, dairy farming, and eco-tourism, to sustain their conservation efforts.
[/full]
