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"id": 189255,
"url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/189255/?format=api",
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"speaker_name": "Mr. Kioni",
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"speaker": {
"id": 49,
"legal_name": "Jeremiah Ngayu Kioni",
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"content": "I wish to draw my contribution from experiences in other areas. I strongly support this very 1864 PARLIAMENTARY DEBATES July 16, 2008 important Motion, because if discussions like this one had been held before, perhaps, issues like the one confronting us in the Mau Forest may not have been as difficult to resolve as they are now. I come from Ndaragwa Constituency, and within is the Aberdares National Park and the Aberdares Forest. Other than the human activity that can be blamed for the loss of this natural resource, there is also the concern, and we have seen this within the Aberdares, that while the Government may have succeeded in keeping the neighbouring communities from interfering with the Aberdares Forest, it did not go far enough to make sure that other issues like regular cases of fire outbreaks were checked. In the case of the Aberdares Forest, we recently lost over 40,000 acres because of a fire that was started from a given corner, accidentally, not having been checked in good time. This is because the Government succeeded in getting people away from this forest, but that did not go hand in hand with the need to make sure that, for example, we have the fire detection command post functioning within this forest. This would ensure that, as we stop human beings from interfering with the forest, the forest is also not taken away from us by fire. Secondly, which is also important, is that when we are looking at these cases of keeping out human activities away from these forests, or natural resources, it is important that the communities that live around the forests are trained and told why they are kept away from these forests. This should not be a one-off exercise. It is something that should be done on a regular basis. It is something that should be taught from Standard One all the way to the university, because it is something that human beings tend to forget quickly, perhaps because of the need for firewood and other economic benefits that come from forests. So, it is important that the Government has a budget, on an annual basis, to educate the communities around forests and remind them why they need to take care of forests. Madam Temporary Deputy Speaker, that will not be sufficient if these communities are also not allowed to take part in whatever programmes that the Government would want to put in place in the form of re-afforestation. If the Government intends to plant trees, it is important that the communities that surround forests are fully involved. Considering the rate at which people are being driven out forests, the Government should be ready to put into place activities that will confirm to the communities that it was serious and had good intentions in kicking people out. It is not very useful to get people out of the forest and then nothing is done in the forest for the next ten to 15 years, yet nearby we have squatters who are still looking for things to do with a piece of land. They will actually feel that they were cheated. It is important that eviction of people from forests goes hand in hand with any developmental activities that the Government would want to do. Those activities must be put in place very quickly. Also important is that there are activities that will continue being carried out by human beings within these forests that are ordinarily not harmful to the natural resource, if they are done within some controlled measure, and guidelines are put in place. One of such activities that I have in mind is harvesting of honey from forests. If communities are educated and encouraged that they can harvest honey from the forest using proper methods other than fire, they will benefit from these forests and preserve the same. This is a very important aspect that may have been overlooked in the past. Also crucial is that some of the human activities that are going on in forests include grazing of cattle. We have agricultural extension officers within communities. It is important that the Government puts its foot down and gets these extension officers to educate communities around forests as to what other alternative crops or fodder can be grown, so that they are able to feed the dairy cows and continue earning income from cattle keeping. In the absence of that, these will look like purely punitive measures taken without considering the needs of communities and what alternative measures beneficial to them can be put in place. Madam Temporary Deputy Speaker, one of the previous speakers talked about the issue of July 16, 2008 PARLIAMENTARY DEBATES 1865 game warders. It is important to have security within the forest for two reasons. One, to make sure that human activities are put into check, and also, importantly, to ensure that the same forests do not become dens of thieves or criminals. Because if that becomes the case, people around the forests will be compelled to move in, and clear those areas that are a source of threat to their security. These are issues that, again, we have experienced in the areas where we come from. They are real issues that we have to contend with on a regular basis. It is important that insecurity that comes from forests is looked into critically and crucially. Trees in these forests sometimes take up to 80 years to mature. I had the privilege - and I want to thank the people within the Aberdares Forest - of touring that area as a Member of Parliament. One of the things that was very scaring was to see trees that had taken 80 years, or more, to mature having been destroyed by fire, just like that, because the Government had not found it necessary then to put in place measures that would enable detecting of fire, or controlling of fire, within a short time. We have had incidents of fire within this forest, which went on for even seven days. It is not possible that the Government can allow a fire to go on for seven days and yet, this is a natural resource we would want to preserve. Madam Temporary Deputy Speaker, in order to ensure that communities feel that they really need to take care of forests, I would like to suggest that, among other public facilities to be considered for inclusion into the Rural Electrification Programme (REP), forests be now considered as public facilities, so that communities living around forests can be allowed to access electricity from very near. That would be a benefit that a forest will be bringing to the communities, and that may encourage the communities to take care of that forest. May I conclude my remarks by citing the example of the recent visit that we had in China. What we learnt in China is that they had a period of destroying their natural resource to a point where they actually finished all trees. Most of the forest cover was destroyed by human activities. However, as you move around that country, the fact of such destruction can only be confirmed to you, because they have had a very extensive reafforestation programme. Now you can literally see that every inch of land has forest cover. The Chinese Government has put in place many programmes to encourage communities to take part in the reafforestation programme. Madam Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, it is important that we draw examples from such countries because, up to the point where communities themselves are undertaking reafforestation, any other effort that can be put in place by the Government would certainly have some difficulties if it does not fail totally. China is a very good example, where people have undertaken afforestation. It is also a very good example of what would happen if our natural resources are not preserved. With those words, I beg to support."
}