KENYA

Kenya’s forests are mostly ‘montane’ forests (mixed forests with more than 30% canopy cover), which are widely scattered and generally degraded. According to the UN, Kenya’s forest cover has reduced from 12% to 1.2% in 2010 as a result of subsistence agriculture, plantation expansion and encroachment by up to 600,000 illegal settlers. Deforestation rates are slowly decreasing, but are still at around 1% annually.

In 1999, the government introduced a partial logging ban, which allowed only four large sawmill companies limited rights to exploit state forests and replenish them through an afforestation programme. However, conservationists criticised the ineffective implementation of the scheme. The ban is due to be lifted following a government announcement in August 2010; this has been welcomed by industry representatives and NGOs alike, many of whom have criticised the ban for resulting in increased logging in public forests, for distorting the market and for driving the logging trade onto the black market.

During the unrest in Kenya in early 2008, illegal operators took advantage of the situation by logging endangered sandalwood trees and other valuable species in the Rift Valley and burning large tracts of forest. Death threats were issued to forest guards and their offices set alight. Since then, the government has attempted to crack down on illegal operators. A specially established squad carried out a number of raids, impounded timber and made arrests.

The crisis in Kenya’s key watersheds due to rapid deforestation has recently been well documented. Rivers and lakes have shrunk and 2009 saw a record drought. Government attempts to protect these vital ecosystems resulted in the first moves against the vast illegal settlements in 2005, when 10-15,000 families were evicted from the edge of the Mau Forest in the Rift Valley. The government began a new push to evict settlers in 2009 and has introduced a programme to plant 7.6 billion trees by 2030 to attempt to reverse the damage.

Kenya is one of 14 countries which will receive funds under the Forest Carbon Partnership Facility, which will reward countries for preserving their forest cover. The countries will receive grants to build their capacity for REDD (Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation), including establishing emissions reference levels, adopting strategies to reduce deforestation, and designing monitoring systems.

DOCUMENTS

DATE	TITLE	AUTHOR
01/02/2008	Forest Products Trade between China and Africa: An Analysis of Imports and Exports Recent media coverage of China's efforts to secure access to natural resources in Africa suggests ...	Forest Trends (Kerstin Canby, James Hewitt, Luke Bailey, Eugenia Katsigris, Sun Xiufang)
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22/11/2005	Failing the Forests: Europe's Illegal Timber Trade Based on trade data for six key timber-producing regions – the Amazon Basin, the Baltic States, ...	WWF
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01/04/2004	Lessons Learnt on Sustainable Forest Management in Africa: Study on Forest Administration and Related Institutional Arrangements This study is a component of a wider initiative jointly undertaken by the Royal Swedish Academy of Agriculture ...	Owino, Prof. F (Forest Resources International, Kenya) & Ndinga, Dr A (Dakar Fann, Senegal)
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NEWS

DATE	TITLE	AUTHOR
22/08/2010	Sawmillers upbeat over plan to lift logging ban Sawmillers have welcomed a government plan to lift the ban on logging imposed 10 years ago. ...	Daily Nation, Kenya
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17/05/2010	Corruption, mismanagement strangle vital Kenyan watershed Nakuru, Kenya - The wooded ridge rising to the west of this bustling provincial capital is the home of ...	The New York Times
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15/01/2010	Kenya water resource faces danger Nairobi - Nobel Laureate Wangari Maathai has warned that if Kenyans are not insistent in protecting forests, ...	Capital FM Kenya
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23/11/2009	With land evictions, Kenya aims to reduce impacts on important ecosystem The Kenyan government has begun forcibly evicting thousands of people in an attempt to halt environmental ...	The New York Times
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22/11/2009	Kenya: 1,000 trees planted in nation's green drive ...	allAfrica.com
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16/11/2009	Thousands of illegal settlers evicted from Kenyan forest Nairobi - Illegal settlers in one of Kenya’s largest forests were evicted from their land last ...	The National, Abu Dhabi
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29/10/2009	Africa: African governments and outside powers must be accountable On the eve of the climate change summit in Copenhagen this December, momentum for action still falls ...	allAfrica.com
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05/10/2009	Redd in Africa: 'how we can earn money from air by harvesting carbon' Kenyan ranch shows how UN scheme could protect forests that absorb CO2 and earn billions of dollars for ...	Guardian, UK
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25/09/2009	Africa's burning charcoal problem At a road block in western Tanzania, miles from anywhere, a uniformed official raises a flagged barrier. ...	BBC News
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15/09/2009	Maathai wants Mau evictions now Nairobi, Kenya - Nobel Laureate Wangari Maathai has challenged the government to kick out Mau forest ...	Capital News, Kenya
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10/09/2009	Kenya: Another water tower on the verge of being wiped out as Mau saga rages Nairobi — Even as the country is engrossed with the fate of the Mau water tower, another key forest ...	allAfrica.com
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09/09/2009	UN backs Kenyan appeal for $81 million to restore critical forest area Kenya launched an appeal for $81 million to fund efforts halting the degradation of its Mau Forests Complex, ...	UN News Centre
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24/08/2009	Watch out! Disaster looming for Kenya Politicians cared little about the burning of East Africa's largest forest - until the lights in ...	The Independent, UK
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12/08/2009	Kenya to plant 7.6 billion trees to check deforestation Nairobi - Kenya said on Wednesday it would plant 7.6 billion trees over the next 20 years to redress ...	ElEconomista.es, Spain
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10/08/2009	The wildebeest river is running dry The animals' stampede through the Mara river is one of nature's most spectacular events. But ...	The Independent, UK
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04/08/2009	Families face eviction as Kenya tries to save forest Mau Forest, Kenya - Ogiek elder Kipkurui Paul Terer faces imminent eviction from the forest area where ...	Reuters
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13/07/2009	Going green with REDD To combat the effects of climate change by reducing carbon emissions, the United Nations Collaborative ...	The East African, Kenya
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02/07/2009	REDD readiness plans for Panama, Guyana approved but rejected for Indonesia The World Bank's Forest Carbon Partnership Facility (FCPF) has approved REDD readiness plans (R-Plans) ...	Mongabay.com
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27/06/2009	Tourism deserts Baringo as lakes dry up ...	Daily Nation, Kenya
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02/06/2009	Merchants of the night are Mau's fresh threat A heavily loaded lorry revs in a dark path carrying its load uphill. Its headlights are off and only ...	The Standard, Kenya
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20/05/2009	Kenya's concerted conservation It is 20 years since a small group of Kenyan conservationists set out to protect the few remaining black ...	Mail & Guardian Online, South Africa
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10/05/2009	Electric fences to stop invasion of Kenya nature parks Armed guards doubled to protect wildlife reserves from farmers desperate for food and water as climate ...	Guardian, UK
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05/05/2009	War on climate change stepped up Kenya President Kibaki and Prime Minister Raila Odinga have launched a programme to plant 60 million ...	Daily Nation, Kenya
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16/04/2009	Kenya signs its first REDD deal to conserve forests ...	Mongabay.com
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28/02/2009	Timber dealers now target indigenous trees Kenya - The rising demand for timber in Kenyas coastal towns has driven merchants turning to mango and ...	East African (Kenya)
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09/11/2008	Failure to implement protection laws decimating forests in Eastern Africa Even as the effects of climate change continue to bite, deforestation and land degradation continue unabated ...	Africa Science News Service (Kenya)
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22/10/2008	Forests at risk over intruders The countrys forest cover and biodiversity is threatened by mass encroachment by people hungry for land, ...	Daily Nation (Kenya)
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21/10/2008	Forestry service calls on State to lift logging ban The Kenya Forestry Service has joined the campaign for lifting of the partial logging ban slapped by ...	Business Daily, Kenya
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18/10/2008	State urged to lift ban on logging of timber Kenya - The government has been urged to lift the partial logging ban to avoid wastage in forests and ...	Daily Nation (Kenya)
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03/10/2008	Six GSU officers arrested over illegal logging in Molo Six armed GSU officers have been arrested engaging in illegal tree harvesting at Logoman Forest in Elburgon, ...	The Standard, Kenya
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10/09/2008	Where residents would prefer jail to plundering their forest It is a forest like no other. And for its uniqueness, it is being used as a case study in conservation ...	Daily Nation (Kenya)
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24/07/2008	14 countries win REDD funding to protect tropical forests Fourteen countries have been selected by the World Bank to receive funds for conserving their tropical ...	Mongabay.com
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14/05/2008	Kenya: Logging ban boosts trade Commercial tree growing has become a multi-billion shilling sector business in Western Kenya region - ...	allAfrica.com
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24/02/2008	Kenya: Squad to Curb Illegal Logging ...	AllAfrica.com
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21/02/2008	Timber traders count their losses as prices increase Kenya - These days, Kelly Kioko, a furniture trader in Gikomba Market, idles in this dusty and noisy ...	Business Daily Africa (Kenya)
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13/02/2008	Kenya: Loggers Capitalise on Violence in North Rift to Venture Into Forests Kenya - Forests in parts of North Rift region have not escaped the effects of political unrest occasioned ...	AllAfrica.com
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18/01/2008	Illegal loggers invade forest and cut down trees More than 2,000 exotic and indigenous trees worth more than Sh1.2 million have been destroyed by illegal ...	Daily Nation (Kenya)
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15/09/2007	More needs to be done on forest policies, says study Even though Kenya has made significant progress in formulating forest laws and policies for effective ...	The Standard (Kenya)
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12/12/2006	Kenya: Saving Forests By Cutting Down Trees Kenya - High demand for timber may soon cause a lifting of the ban on harvesting, which has been in force ...	AllAfrica.com
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11/12/2006	Forests still being depleted, despite ban Kenya - About five years ago, the government announced a ban on logging after realizing that saw-millers ...	Kenya Broadcasting Corporation (Kenya)
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07/12/2006	New report gives direction to IBA conservation in Kenya A report from NatureKenya (BirdLife in Kenya) sheds new light on the changing challenges and pressures ...	BirdLife International (UK)
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19/07/2006	Loggers, carvers threaten pristine coastal woodland Kenya - Pristine forest threatened by illegal logging. ...	Standard (Kenya)
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17/07/2006	Kenya: Loggers, Carvers Threaten Pristine Coastal Woodland Kenya - Beautiful birds singing in giant trees and butterflies fluttering their wings reduced our anxiety ...	AllAfrica.com
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08/06/2006	17 pit-sawyers arrested Uganda - Park rangers have arrested 17 illegal pit-sawyers and impounded 14 saws at Mt. Elgon national ...	New Vision (Uganda)
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03/06/2006	Forest Act to be enforced, says Kibwana Kenya - The Forest Act 2005 will be enforced from early next year, Environment minister Kivutha Kibwana ...	Standard (Kenya)
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30/01/2006	Traders Want Logging Ban Lifted Nairobi, Kenya - Timber traders have called on the Government to lift the ban on logging, saying that ...	AllAfrica.com
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12/01/2006	Logging: Forest patrols intensified The Kenya Wildlife Service will patrol Arabuko Sokoke forest day and night to protect it from illegal ...	Standard (Kenya)
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12/01/2004	Kenya - New Bill on forests set to be tabled in Parliament A new Bill that will see the recovery of the country's dilapidated forests will come to Parliament ...	East African Standard
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01/12/2003	The plunder of Kenya's forests continues… One month ago, Environment Minister, Dr Newton Kulundu, sent home — in a widely criticised move ...	East African Standard
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25/10/2003	Kenya suspends forestry staff More than 800 forestry officers in Kenya have been suspended while the government investigates alleged ...	BBC News
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EVENTS

DATE	TITLE
Monday 6th December 2004	Commission For Africa ' Forest Programme Brainstorm A brainstorming session on illegal logging held in part to feed into the Commission for Africa Report, ...
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