Kenyan Government Gives Citizens Holiday To Plant 100 million Seedlings

As part of the Kenyan government’s initiative to plant 15 billion trees in ten years, Kenyans have been granted a special holiday to plant 100 million trees.

According to Environment Minister; Soipan Tuya, “each and every Kenyan can own the initiative” with the vacation.

To reach the 100-million target, every Kenyan is urged to plant two seedlings at minimum. The goal of the effort is to aid in the battle against climate change. Because they release oxygen into the atmosphere and absorb carbon dioxide from the air, trees contribute to the fight against global warming.

In public nurseries, the government is providing roughly 150 million saplings.

At its forest agency centers, it is giving away free seedlings for Kenyans to plant in approved public spaces. However, Kenyans have also been inspired to purchase a minimum of two seedlings to be planted on their land.

The drill is being led by President William Ruto in Makueni, in the east of the nation. Alongside county governors, cabinet members have been dispatched to other regions to spearhead the process.

An internet app that allows people and organizations to register activities, such as the type of plant, quantity planted, and date planted, will be used to monitor the tree planting.

According to the environment ministry, the Jaza Miti app will also assist users in planting the proper seedlings by matching the place with the suitable species.

On Sunday night, Ms. Tuya told the local Citizen TV that the response had been “amazing” and that by Sunday, two million people had registered for the app.

She did, however, state that because of the flooding in the northeast, no planting will take place there.

The northern part of the country is severely affected by the intense El Niño rains that have caused thousands of people to be relocated, destroyed infrastructure, and killed scores of people.

Kenyans have praised the tree-planting campaign in general but have also pointed out several difficulties.

The project is a “very good idea,” according to environmentalist Teresa Muthoni, who told the BBC that it was not planned so that everyone would go out planting trees.

She stated that “many people have to continue with their work to put food on the table… it is coming at a time when our economy is not doing well so a lot of people are struggling financially”.

In public nurseries, “a lot of the 150 million trees available” are alien, she added. “It is very important to plant the right trees in the right place,” she stated.

The government, which recently repealed the prohibition on logging, has also come under fire for encouraging tree planting while doing little to stop illicit logging in public forests.

However, the minister justified the choice on Sunday, claiming that only woods intended for commercial use—roughly 5% of the total—were impacted.

She added that the government was taking action against illegal loggers in other woods and that this was vital to meet the local need for wood and create jobs.

In addition to addressing food security, she said the effort was a “mitigation against climate change” that would assist address the nation’s recurring floods and droughts.

According to Ms. Tuya, the planting effort will continue after the special holiday, and is anticipated to plant 500 million trees by December, when the rainy season ends.