WWF-Kenya, Forestry State Department partner to Drive 15 billion trees initiative

Kenya's government and WWF-Kenya have signed a five-year partnership to boost the country's 15 Billion Trees Initiative. The collaboration aims to restore degraded landscapes, grow trees, and improve livelihoods across the nation. Secretary for Forestry Gitonga Mugambi emphasized the need for government, private sector, communities, and non-state actors to work together in achieving Kenya's environmental restoration goals.

The initiative aligns with the National Landscape and Ecosystem Restoration Strategy, which outlines the roadmap for conserving forests, water towers, rangelands, wetlands, marine areas, agro-ecosystems, settlements, and infrastructure by 2032. WWF-Kenya will bring its technical expertise, resources, and experience in community-based conservation to support the 15 Billion Trees Secretariat and replicate successful restoration models in priority areas.

One such model is the Kaptagat Integrated Conservation Programme, which has restored 2,700 hectares of forestland and created jobs for farmers while providing clean water to 15,000 farmers. WWF-Kenya's CEO Jackson Kiplagat highlighted the importance of linking environmental restoration with community livelihoods through four pillars: household income, clean energy, access to clean water, and healthy landscapes.

The organization will continue its #KeepKenyaBreathing platform to engage citizens, schools, and corporations in tree-growing efforts, with a target of mobilizing one billion trees in priority landscapes.