NEWS Analysis by Leo Odera Omolo In Kisumu City
EXPERTS have warned that Kenya’s arid and semi arid areas are fast turning into desert unless stern preventive measures are taken in time.
The warning come from the National Environment Management Authority [NEMA] has warned that 80 per cent of arid and semi arid areas are fast becoming unproductive in terms of food grain production.
Kenya is among countries in Sub-Saharan Africa now threatened by desertification. It has about 17 million acres of forest cover representing 2.5 per cent of its total land area. Dry land, however, account for 50 per cent of the country’s total land surface while forest cover continues to decrease mainly due to clearance for human settlement.
The Ministry in charge of Environment has said that the phenomenon has spread in recent years putting a severe strain on Agriculture.
The fears was expressed by the Director of NEMA Mr Ayub Macharia who said the latest satellite information shows that country is rapidly losing vegetative cover at an alarming rate.
‘Desertification is now threatening the livelihood of the pastoralist communities in various parts of the country. Unless we start planting trees, these areas will turn into harsh desert within the next ten years,’ said Macharia.
The Nema Director was speaking during the launch of the United Nations Decade for Desert and Plight against Desertification held in the Kenyan capital, Nairobi.
‘Africa is at risk with some 22 million of its people living on land that is threatened by desertification.
The United Nations launched an eleven year plan to tackle desertification worldwide. These plans include raising awareness and taking activities in the management as well as taking action in the management and protection of vegetative cover
Present at the launching of these plan were the representatives of the Un Environment Program [UNEP], the UNDP, the World Agro forestry Center [ICRAF] AND THE International fund for Agriculture and Development.
UNEP Deputy Executive Director Angela Cropper said the UN would accelerate efforts to combat deforestation.’ Using ten year awareness on the causes and solutions to desertification, ‘cropper added.
UNDP resident representative Aeneas Chuma asked governments in Africa to pay attention to people living in dry areas.’ Unless we improve the livelihood of people living in arid areas, we should forget about the MDGs particularly on poverty reduction,’ said Chuma.
ICRAF deputy director general Tom Simons called for immediate rehabilitation of landscapes in dry areas. He said the eleven years plan would provide the importance of forest under dry land to the communities across the world.
The Nairobi function yesterday coincides with another meeting currently going on in Fortaleza, Brazil.
After independence in 1963, the communities living in various parts of the West of Rift Valley Province defiantly went into tree felling rampage. Most of the forest and vegetation cover were destroyed by the timber merchants and the charcoal burners with impunity. The worse hit areas include Nandi Escarpment, Tinderet, Soin in Kericho, Burn Forest, Kuresoi, Mau Forest and other areas. What is now left on the top of the hills and mountains along the Nandi Escarpment are the sharp rocks pointing to the sky. These rocks are becoming real menace to the people living in the settlement blow as at time these rocks flies downward threatening the residents of villages below the hills.
Prior to the country attainment of political independence , the British colonial administration had kept the local chiefs and their assistants on their toes keeping vigilant against illegal tree belling, illegal logging, charcoal burner and timber merchants, but after independent the country administrative system seemed to have totally collapsed.
In areas such as Songhor, Fort-Tennan. Koru, Sondu, Kapsarok, Kibeneti along the Nyanza / Rift Valley borders those indignant trees, which used to stand magnificently on the top of the hills have gone up in smokes, perhaps in the born fire of independence.
Ends
leooderaomolo@yahoo.com