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{
    "id": 127492,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/127492/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 371,
    "type": "other",
    "speaker_name": "",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": null,
    "content": "Further, it would provide a long-term solution for the people to be relocated from the forest. The restoration of old graded forests and critical water catchment areas would be corrected. The task force would be empowered to mobilise resources to implement the recommendations and secure the sustainability of the entire eco-system. There is a Gazette Notice to confirm this fact on 1st August this year. The Task Force has comprehensively assessed the on-going destruction and degradation and controlled forest and illegal forest extraction and encroachment. It has also commissioned scientific studies to identify the critical water catchment and biodiversity hotspots in the Mau. The Report was laid, as I said, in this House. Mr. Speaker, Sir, the overall conclusion is that the Mau Forest Complex is a critical water catchment area and needs to be reclaimed and restored as a natural asset of national importance. It is a national disaster in waiting and if left unchecked, the country will suffer irreparable damage. Therefore, the Task Force that has been formed is being led by a very experienced civil servant in the name of Hassan Noor. We have no doubt that Mr. Hassan Noor and the team which comprise officers from the relevant Ministries will be able to deal with the issues at hand. Mr. Speaker, Sir, in that Report, the Task Force observed that 18,516 title deeds were issued in 2001 and 80 per cent of those title deeds were found to be regular. The Task Force further observed that forest legal boundaries have not been fully surveyed or demarcated on the ground. The Task Force observed that unless fundamental reforms are made in the way our natural resources are managed for sustainable development, the country is likely to continue to suffer. The proposal of the Task Force is that, the Mau Task Force knows that the Kenyan forest cover is below the expected international stands as I have said and the Mau Forest Complex is the single-most critical water catchment in Rift Valley and western part of the country. The Task Force has observed that the entire bio-diversity is under threat and that millions of people dependent on the ecological services derived from the Mau are likely to suffer, unless something is done. What is important is to note that the implementation of the recommendation of this Task Force is vital and other fundamental factors need to be taken into account. Mr. Speaker, Sir, it is important for us to ensure that the implementation of this report should be guided by the spirit of nationalism, patriotism and love for the country. It should be noted that national interests should be the overriding goal and not short-term scores at the expense of long-term national good. Implementation should be geared towards sustainable use of Mau Complex and natural resources. Conservation and rehabilitation of the Mau has raised concern of the public and the development partners who support an integrated approach in the entire Mau eco-system. The Task Force in carrying out its duties will bear in mind that those people who are in Mau are Kenyans and that any steps taken to relocate the Kenyans that are within the Mau will take cognizance of the fact that the process must be humane. Civic education is important and all the political leaders in the region should be consulted and be brought on board so that the exercise is done smoothly."
}