Kenya Intensifies Restoration of Cherengany Hills Under CHERISH Initiative
The Government has stepped up efforts to restore the degraded Cherangany Hills ecosystem, one of Kenya’s five critical water towers, through the flagship Cherangany Hills Ecosystem Restoration for Livelihood Improvement, Sustainability and Harmony (CHERISH) Programme.
Speaking during a high-level partners’ breakfast roundtable held in Nairobi on 17th April 2026, Interior Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen, who is also the Patron of the CHERISH Programme, underscored the urgency of restoring the 414,928-hectare ecosystem. The landscape spans Elgeyo-Marakwet County, West Pokot County, Trans-Nzoia County, and Uasin Gishu County.
He noted that years of unregulated human activity have led to severe degradation, with 15 percent of the ecosystem critically degraded and 67 percent moderately degraded. This has resulted in significant loss of forest and grassland cover, biodiversity decline, and recurring landslides that have disrupted livelihoods.
The 10-year CHERISH Programme, anchored on the President’s 15 Billion Trees Growing Agenda, aims to restore over 62,000 hectares of degraded land, protect key water sources, and create up to 500,000 green jobs for youth. These opportunities will be driven through initiatives such as agroforestry, beekeeping, and ecotourism.
The programme is set to be officially launched on 22nd May 2026 in Elgeyo-Marakwet County, alongside the inaugural Cherangany Conservation Run scheduled for 21st May 2026.
His Environment, Climate Change and Forestry counterpart, Deborah Barasa, reaffirmed the Government’s commitment to ecosystem restoration. She noted that the adoption of Cherangany Hills under the 15 Billion Trees Growing Programme marks a significant milestone in safeguarding Kenya’s natural capital.
Dr. Barasa highlighted national progress, including the planting of over 1.43 billion trees and the establishment of robust seedling production and monitoring systems. She emphasized the shift from tree planting to tree growing as a measure of accountability and long-term impact.
She further described the CHERISH Programme as a transformative, multi-stakeholder initiative aligned with the Bottom-Up Economic Transformation Agenda, positioning ecosystem restoration as both an environmental and economic priority.
The event brought together key government officials, including Principal Secretaries Gitonga Mugambi, Festus K. Ng’eno, and Joel Arumonyang, alongside county leadership from Elgeyo-Marakwet, Members of Parliament, and heads of sector agencies.
Development partners in attendance included United Nations Development Programme, Equity Group Holdings and its foundation, KCB Group, Intergovernmental Authority on Development, World Resources Institute, World Wide Fund for Nature Kenya, Kenya Wildlife Service, Kenya Forest Service, Water Resources Authority, Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Research Organization, Kenya Electricity Generating Company, Nature Kenya, and the Kenya Accreditation Service, among others.