This archive report was first published on 22 October 2019.
Equity Group Embarks on Ambitious Tree Planting Initiative ¶
Equity Group has announced plans to plant 35 million trees across the country within a year, as part of its efforts to promote environmental conservation and support the government's Big Four Agenda on Food Security and Youth Employment.
The initiative, which was launched on the bank's 35th Anniversary, aims to empower youth who will be tasked with raising high-quality tree seedlings in nurseries as an income-generating activity.
Equity has partnered with the Kenya Forest Service (KFS) to promote Farm Forestry Initiatives, with KFS providing technical support including the identification of hotspots that require urgent tree cover and/or rehabilitation of degraded forests.
According to Dr. James Mwangi, Group CEO and Managing Director, the 35 million trees will represent 1 million trees for each year since the bank began operations in Kenya.
Equity supports the transition to clean energy that reduces reliance on wood fuel, charcoal, and fossils fuels like kerosene as a source of energy, which has a direct impact on health outcomes through a reduction in household air pollution, positive impact on the environment, reduction in carbon footprint, and climate change mitigation.
Equity has other initiatives in the Energy and Environment space ongoing that have seen it plant more than 1 million trees in the Mau Water Tower.
According to scientists, planting trees is one of the biggest and cheapest ways of taking CO2 out of the atmosphere to tackle the climate crisis.
Chairman of KFS board Peter Kinyua congratulated Equity for the many things they have done in the business world and social sector that have transformed the lives and livelihoods of Kenyans.
