CS Kuria Urges Kisumu Residents to Plant Trees During Short Rains

Kisumu, Kenya – Cabinet Secretary for Public Service, Moses Kuria, has called on the residents of Kisumu County to utilize the ongoing short rains for tree planting, aiming to enhance the region’s tree cover. This appeal was made during the national tree planting exercise at Kodiaga Prisons, Kisumu County, where the CS participated in planting over 6,000 tree seedlings.

According to Kenya News Agency, this initiative is part of a larger, multi-stakeholder effort to meet the presidential directive of planting more than 15 billion trees by 2032. The CS emphasized the importance of a collaborative approach at the grassroots level to combat climate change and its impacts, citing the recent droughts that have heavily affected the livestock sector, resulting in losses estimated at Sh1.8 billion.

Kuria highlighted the necessity for every Kenyan to engage in environmental conservation to mitigate the effects of global warming. He assured that his ministry, through the Public Service Performance Contract and Delivery Unit, would closely monitor and ensure the achievement of tree planting targets set for civil servants and state departments.

Governor Anyang’ Nyong’o of Kisumu County, in a statement read by County Executive Committee Member for Environment, Maryline Agwa, echoed the importance of tree planting as a collective responsibility. Prof. Nyong’o reported that his staff had planted over 5,000 trees and were committed to planting more towards the goal of 9 million tree seedlings in Kisumu County.

The Governor highlighted the significant impact of global warming on the county, particularly the adverse effects on livelihoods due to unpredictable weather patterns, droughts, and floods. Kisumu County Commissioner Hussein Allasow reported that more than 103,000 tree seedlings were planted across various sites in the county on Monday. He noted that tree planting activities during the short rain period would focus on strategic sites to maximize the survival rates of the seedlings.

The event in Kisumu also saw the participation of notable dignitaries, including Nyanza Regional Commissioner Flora Mworoa, Leah Kasera from the Office of the Head of Public Service, Charles Owino, Chairperson of the Kenya Institute of Mass Communication, and James Diang’a, Chairman of the Lake Basin Development Authority Board.