Environment, Climate Change and Forestry Cabinet Secretary Soipan Tuya has expressed optimism in Kenya’s goal to plant 15 billion trees by 2032 in bid to achieve 30pc tree cover.
Speaking during the passing out parade of 2, 664 Kenya Forest Rangers in Gilgil, the CS urged Kenyans to participate in reforestation efforts even as the country anticipates heavy rains.
“We are waiting with baited breath for rains and we have set in place a strategy for every individual to plant and nurture trees. If we do 100 trees per Kenyan every year we will surpass the 15 billion target. It is doable,” Tuya affirmed.
She disclosed that comprehensive measures have been instituted to deploy the newly graduated forest rangers to various hotspots across the country.
The CS said the forest rangers will assist in raising of seedlings and tree planting in the country while helping the ministry deal with challenges such as illegal logging, charcoal burning, forest encroachment among others.
“The passing out of these recruits today will come to complement in a big way in efforts to improve the health of our forest ecosystems. Forests are important for Kenya they provide many resources that are used in our daily lives,” she said.
Tuya said the Ministry has implemented measures to improve the response systems for forest fires, both through technology and mounting of surveillance points.
“We are also exploring and with the support of partners the use of drones to detect illegal forest activities. We are calling out to our partners to help us fence off all our protected eco systems in the country,” she stated.
