Lawmakers are being asked to weigh in on a government plan to remove protection from 6,708 hectares of public forest to formally recognise settlements that have existed for decades.
Environment, Climate Change and Forestry Cabinet Secretary Deborah Barasa has presented a petition to Parliament seeking approval to degazette sections of four forests, allowing long-term residents to receive title deeds.
Barasa’s request covers 989.17 hectares of South Nandi Forest, 1,241 hectares of Turbo Forest, 4,647 hectares of Mt Elgon Forest, and 130.99 hectares within Kakamega Forest, split between Shiru and Shaviringa.
These areas have been occupied since the 1980s by communities whose presence has not yet been legally regularised.
“The ministry presents this petition pursuant to Articles 36, 62, and 119 of the Constitution as well as Section 34 of the Forest Conservation and Management Act Cap 385, Laws of Kenya.
The Forest Conservation Act gives effect to Article 69 of the Constitution with regard to forest resources. Section 34 of the Act empowers any person to submit a petition to Parliament to recommend a proposal to vary the boundary or revoke registration,” reads the petition.
According to Barasa, the South Nandi parcels in Chepkumia were settled after farmers exchanged their hilly farmland with forest land. The forest spans approximately 17,960.50 hectares and was initially designated a forest in 1936 before being declared a central forest in 1964.
For Turbo Forest, she says the areas proposed for degazettement were intended for landless settlers in the Manzini Forest Block in 1995. Turbo Forest originally covered 19,038 acres and was legally declared in 1968.
In Mt Elgon, 4,647 hectares were previously allocated under the Chepyuk Settlement Scheme of 1974 to accommodate the Elgony Dorobo who lived deep inside the forest.
Similarly, the Shiru and Shaviringa parcels in Kakamega were part of a 1988 settlement scheme compensating families whose land was acquired for public institutions including Vihiga District Hospital, Mbale Hospital, and Vokoli Secondary School.
Barasa notes that the ministry received multiple petitions from citizens across the country claiming long-term settlement on public forest lands.
An Inter-Ministerial Committee was set up to investigate the claims, and its report confirmed that the disputed areas are inhabited by people engaged in non-forestry activities who have lived there for many years.
Following the committee’s findings, the Kenya Forest Service Board recommended in writing that these settlements be regularised through changes to forest boundaries as provided under Section 34 of the Forest Conservation and Management Act.
Parliament will now determine whether the boundary adjustments and title deeds can proceed.
