Mau Forest rehabilitation still overshadowed by forced evictions
MAASAI MAU, Kenya — Two years ago, Kenyan authorities evicted 30,000 people from their homes in the Maasai Mau section of the Mau Forest. The evictees, many of whom had been living here for 20 years or more, say they’ve been stripped of land they paid for and have nowhere else to go. The Mau forest, 140 kilometers (87 miles) south of the Kenyan capital, Nairobi, was declared a forest reserve in the 1950s. The Kenya Forest Service says it’s the largest remaining indigenous forest in Kenya, covering 400,000 hectares (988,000 acres). The forest also includes areas of exotic commercial trees planted by the forest department. The headwaters for many of the region’s most important rivers are found here, including the source of the Mara River, which supports the Mara-Serengeti ecosystem. These rivers are also vital to thousands of communities that depend on them for water for agriculture and domestic use. The southwestern highlands surrounding the forest are densely populated with farmers and herders. Francis Serem moved to the Maasai Mau section of the forest 20 years ago from Kericho county, some 50 km (30 mi) further west. In his mid-50s at the time, he says he paid $600 to a former chief of the area. ‘I moved here because this place is fertile for farming and it was affordable. This has been my home for the better part of my life,’ he says. He set up on 2 hectares (5 acres) growing tea and maize. Tens of thousands of…This article was originally published on Times of Nation
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