Kenya to restore 5.1 mln hectares of degraded forest

Kenya has committed to restore 5.1 million hectares of degraded forest lands in a response to the Bonn challenge under the 2015 Paris agreement, a senior official said Friday.

Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources Cabinet Secretary Judi Wakhungu told a forest forum in Nairobi that Kenya Forest Service (KFS) has already comprehensively mapped all the degraded forest sites.

Government data indicate that Kenya's forest coverage currently stands at 7.4 percent, up from 6.99 percent in 2010. Kenya's constitution requires the country to achieve a forest coverage of at least 10 percent by the year 2030.

Wakhungu said that the forestry practices and conservation efforts carried out by KFS play a pivotal role in the development of industries in rural areas that support over 300,000 people employed in the timber and wood conversion sector.

"The timber industry in particular has greatly supported the construction and furniture sector which is currently registering tremendous growth," she said.

Wakhungu noted that Kenya is well recognized as an agriculture based country with products such as tea.

"It is acknowledged that the competitiveness of the tea industry is based on suitable micro-climatic conditions that are regulated by forests and the fuel wood utilized to cure the green leaves resulting in an internationally recognized high quality brand," she noted.

"Therefore we have an obligation to conserve our forests bearing in mind they support such vital sectors for Kenya's economic growth," she said. Enditem