By Daniel Kipchumba
A three-year community-led restoration project has rehabilitated 68 hectares of Dundori Forest, an area damaged by illegal logging, and helped local residents earn income from conservation activities.
The project, which began in 2023, was handed over to the Kenya Forest Service (KFS) in a ceremony that brought together the Green Belt Movement, community forest associations, KFS, Nakuru County officials, the Agence Française de Développement (AFD) and the French ambassador to Kenya.
Community members played a central role in the work, producing seedlings in local nurseries and planting them in the forest. Nyaguthii Chege of the Green Belt Movement said this involvement had helped build a sense of ownership among residents.
The project also created a source of income for participating households. Fifteen nursery groups in Dundori earned hundreds of thousands of shillings over the past three years through their work supplying seedlings. Fruit trees distributed through the initiative are expected to provide further income while supporting conservation.
Ann Gael Chapuis, AFD’s country director, said linking conservation with livelihoods was essential to the project’s long-term impact.
“A very key component of this project is to ensure that the communities continue to see their wealth growing through income-generating activities,” she said, adding that such opportunities can help reduce illegal forest activities associated with poverty.
The Dundori initiative is the second phase of a €2.6 million project that has supported the livelihoods of 1,000 households and contributed to the planting of thousands of trees.
Boniface Muluwa, the KFS head of natural forest management, said KFS was expanding tree nurseries to increase seedling supply and strengthen the forestry value chain.
“We can only wish that such partnerships will continue so that we can even bridge gaps in technology, expertise and resources in managing our forests,” Muluwa said.
French ambassador Wadid Bernaabou said the partnership between France, AFD, the Green Belt Movement, KFS and Nakuru County had combined forest restoration with support for livelihoods and food security. He said the community’s participation offered encouragement as Kenya works toward its tree-growing targets.
