Forest stakeholders in the Rift Valley want the government to come up with a harmonised forest management policy to ensure sustainable management of all types of forests in the country.
Speaking in Nakuru on Thursday during a one-day workshop organised by the National Forest Programme secretariat, the stakeholders proposed an all-inclusive management system of the forest resources. The programme includes women who were allegedly left out in the conservation process.
The stakeholders, who included representatives from the Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS), Kenya Forest Service (KFS), civil society, county governments, political leaders and community leaders proposed that management regulations for county forests and government gazetted forests should be harmonised to come up with a single regulation to avert confusion in the management.
David Mutisya, the National Family Programme (NFP) secretariat chief officer, said the Environment ministry was creating awareness on the national forest policy and receiving views from stakeholders at the grassroots to help them come up with a policy that will ensure sustainable management of forests in the country, in addition to increasing forest cover in the country.
A representative of the Friends of Karura Forest, Prof Karanja Njoroge, said previously, poor management of forest resources in the country had resulted to massive destruction of the environment. This was through illegal logging and charcoal burning. He added that the new policy will enhance an all-inclusive forest management that will reap economic and social benefits for the government and the communities living around the forests.