FEATURED STORY

Youth group in ambitious plan to plant 1 million trees in every county

Meforest, a youth initiative group with interests in environment has embarked on an ambitious plan to plant a million trees in every county in Kenya.

The group’s plan is to increase forest cover in Arid and Semi-Arid (ASAL) counties.

It has engaged Machakos Senator Boniface Kabaka who has welcomed the idea and will be tasked with ensuring that the exercise gets political support.

Machakos County will be first to benefit from the initiative with the plan being to start planting trees in Governor Alfred Mutua’s turf before moving to other parts of the country which have suffered the brunt of deforestation.

In its elaborate national plan, Meforest will partner with counties and will source seedlings and expertise from the Kenya Forestry Research Institute (KFRI), Kenya Forest Service (KFS).

The nurseries will be operated by local youth and women entrepreneurs in the country.

“Meforest Initiative in its initial program in collaboration with the Office of the Machakos Senator in a bid to empower the youth and women by enabling them earn an income through the planting of trees,” read the statement to newsrooms from Meforest.

The initiative group is looking to kill two birds with one stone, conserving the environment by planting trees and ensuring that the youth generating income by engaging in the tree planting activities.

“We see sustainable tree growing as having a significant impact on both poverty alleviation and the environment,” adds the statement.

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Besides tree planting activities, conservation measures will be encouraged, especially at schools.

“In this initiative schools will also benefit as they play a crucial role in the tree nursery set up as the children will inculcate a green culture thus propagating green generations,” reads the statement.

The initiative is being supported by the Ministry of Devolution and ASAL areas and Kenya Forest Research Institute (KEFRI).

This comes amid government efforts to rid the country’s water towers off encroachers most notably Mau Forest who engage in logging leading to drought.