This archive report was first published on 24 July 2021.
On Friday, the Environment and Forestry ministry launched a masterplan to restore and rehabilitate the Cherangany-Elgeyo Hills ecosystem, a key water tower that has been degraded over the years.
The launch took place at Chepkorio show grounds in Elgeyo-Marakwet, where locals, Community Forest Association members, conservationists, and officials from various government entities gathered to plant trees as part of the fifth edition of the Annual Kaptagat Tree-Planting event.
Environment Principal Secretary Chris Kiptoo emphasized the importance of the masterplan, which covers four counties: Elgeyo-Marakwet, West Pokot, Trans Nzoia, and Uasin Gishu.
"Today, we have launched the Cherangany-Elgeyo Hills Ecosystem restoration master plan for the rehabilitation of degraded areas in this important ecosystem that is home to two key water towers. I urge our local leaders and community to support and participate in restoration efforts," said PS Kiptoo.
The ecosystem, spanning 414,928 hectares, lies within the Lake Victoria and Rift Valley drainage basins, draining its waters to Lake Victoria and Lake Turkana.
During this year's tree-planting event, stakeholders sourced 319,000 seedlings, including 310,770 indigenous trees, 6,470 bamboo seedlings, and 3,200 fruit trees.
WWF-Kenya contributed 110,290 assorted indigenous tree seedlings and 3,090 bamboo seedlings, valued at over Sh4 million, to this year's drive.
The government aims to plant 2 billion trees by 2022 and has initiated mass production of seeds and seedlings through the Kenya Forest Research Institute (Kefri).
