Parliament has proposed an Amendment Bill that will provide a comprehensive legal framework for forest conservation by addressing modern challenges and strengthening governance as well as accountability in the forestry sector.
Before the proposed Forest Conservation and Management (Amendment) 2025 Bill is enacted into law, the National Assembly Departmental Committee on Environment, Forestry and Mining is seeking to review the proposals by gathering stakeholder views across the country.
Speaking in Kakamega on Wednesday during a public participation forum, the committee’s Vice-chair Charles Kamuren, who is also MP for Baringo South said some of the provisions in the proposed law attempts to fill the regulatory loopholes that have plagued the forestry sector in Kenya.
Some of the notable transformations include the introduction of dry forestry and the empowerment of ordinary citizens to own and register private forests under a legal framework.
“There is also the introduction of dry-land forestry and even the local people will have an opportunity of owning their own private forests within this Act”, he said.
Kamuren said another significant institutional change that the Bill seeks to bring on board is the creation of the Office of the Director of Forest Regulation, who will be in charge of regulation and compliance while licensing, issuance of permits will be domiciled in the ministry Environment, Climate Change and Forestry.
“Issues to do with licenses and permits will, under the proposed Bill be now be within the Ministry and well regulated, not the way it is; you get some issues are under National Environment Management Authority (NEMA) or Kenya Forestry Services (KFS). The Cabinet Secretary will now be in charge of revenue collection”, he added.
Kamuren, who was accompanied by members of the committee Charity Kathambi Chepkwony (MP) Njoro, Titus Lotee (MP)Kacheliba and Beatrice Kemei (Woman Representative Kericho County) said the Kenya Forestry Services will also get more autonomy and powers in matters conservation.
The Bill is also proposing Payment for Ecosystem Services (PES) Schemes that would provide a formal scheme of rewarding individuals and communities that are involved in conservation efforts.
“Kenyans with passion and commitment in areas of conservation will now be recognized and awarded”. If you are doing conservation, you will be recognized and awarded for the good work you are doing. You will see many people coming in to support environmental conservation”, he added
He said the Bill also proposes establishment of an academy to specifically provide technical skills and knowledge on matter to do with environmental conservation
The legislator added that the Bill will also seek to address issues of perennial conflicts between forestry rangers and members of the community neighboring gazetted forests,
Concerning the matters of human-wildlife as well as community-forest tensions, the Vice-Chair pointed out that the Bill proposes organized and regular training of forest rangers to enable them to be more competent in dealing with tensions between them and the immediate communities.
He also added that communities that surround gazetted forests would also have the power to co-manage the forest resources with the government agencies, and this would form a participatory model of forest governance and management.
“We shall have a serious training for rangers so that they understand how to tackle conflicts within the community bordering forests. Further, the same community will be empowered to run the same forests with the government.”, he added.
Participants welcomed the proposed changes but raised concerns about carbon credit opportunities and the possibility of Kenya tapping the revenue of its tropical forest cover.
“How can Kenya enjoy the fruits of carbon markets like other countries in the region, like Rwanda which has already taken steps towards carbon monetization?” posed Andrew Biketi from a Civil Society Organization involved in conservation matters.
According to the Committee, the provisions of the Bill on ecosystem services and carbon market, including Reduced Emissions of Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD+), would be the key to unlocking such opportunities in Kenya.
The chairman of the Misango Hills Community Forest Association (CFA) Sylavanos Omurunga raised the problem of poor resources to CFA’s at the grassroots level.
He said that CFAs nationwide are relying heavily on donor funding to stay afloat, and KFS on the ground is short of funds to buy seedlings even in communities that have initiated nurseries as a source of livelihood.
“We are crumbling with nothing being directed to the CFAs, and in case the donors are not available, we get stuck. We want to make sure that the Amended Act contains some form of direct government funding for CFA’s, he added.
Brenice Muhadia Indimuli, founder of a youth-led environmental restoration organization, Ecovation Africa, based in Vihiga County urged the government to use youth as environmental champions in order to achieve its vision of achieving the national adaptation plan of planting 30 billion trees by 2030.
by George Kaiga and Godfrey Wang’anya
