This archive report was first published on 2 November 2019.
On November 1, 2019, Environment and Forestry Cabinet Secretary Keriako Tobiko led a multi-agency team in the restoration of Maasai Mau Forest in Sierra Leone area after a 60-day notice to the settlers had lapsed.
Politicians from the Rift Valley had earlier termed the Mau evictions a humanitarian crisis, but Mr. Tobiko dismissed these claims, saying the operation was carried out without violence.
Speaking at the event, Mr. Tobiko said 96% of the settlers had left voluntarily, with the government assisting the remaining 4% with tractors to move their belongings out.
He launched an initiative to plant 10 million trees in the forest, with the project themed 'Restore Mau, Save the Mara-Serengeti Ecosystem, Save Lives.'
Leaders who accompanied the CS, including Narok Senator Ledama ole Kina and Narok North MP Moitalel ole Kenta, lamented that rivers in the Mara, Lake Victoria, and the Nile basins, whose source is the forest, are drying up with devastating effects to millions of people who depend on them.
