Self Help Group Spearheads greening the country with 1 million seedlings

Maua Sunday May 21 2023,

K.N.A By Kamanja Maeria and Edith Mwendwa

A self-help group at Igembe central in Maua, Meru County known as Mazao Self-help group which has been planting trees since 2006 and currently has more than one million seedlings with eight hundred thousand being indigenous trees in its nursery is heeding the call by the president of planting 15 billion trees by 2032.

Speaking to KNA Isaiah Kubai, the group Chairperson said that Mazao Self-help group has managed to donate more than 700,000 indigenous trees this year and plant them in water catchment areas such as Mporoko swamp, Nkalune, Gitwe well, Kathima, alongside Bwathonaro and Kambine rivers.

He maintained that they are putting in efforts towards implementing the presidential national target of planting 15 billion trees in the next ten years to increase the forest cover.

Kubai noted that they are ready to train people on seedlings preparation and seedbed and nursery bed preparations to increase the number of trees adding that they have been training community members on how to plant trees and a number of them have embraced the exercise.

He further said they have devoted themselves to collecting a variety of seeds from different forested areas in the county.

“We have devoted ourselves to this noble task of establishing seed beds and planting a variety of trees. In our seed beds are species like Casuarina, Croton, Meru oak, Pines, Nandi flame, Markhamia, Cyprus and Grevillea,’’ the chairperson said.

Grace Kainda, the treasurer of the group disclosed that nine secondary schools in the sub-county which have benefited from their trainings namely Thitha Secondary school, Nturuba day secondary School, Ntuene Secondary school, Kilima Mungu Secondary school, St. Angela's Secondary school, Kilimamungu Secondary school, Athiru Secondary school, kandubai Secondary school and Kaongo ka Mauu Secondary school.

She enlightened that they have trained students on seedling growing, preparation and conservation of seedbed and how to fight pests and diseases in the nursery beds.

She revealed that they have been selling seedlings to the residents to enable them purchase more seeds and run the program smoothly.

"We have been selling seedlings to farmers at affordable prices from Sh10 to Sh15 depending on species to ensure that they also take part in greening the country” Grace said.

Grace called upon the ministry of agriculture and the forestry department to support their project by giving them more seeds and buying their seedlings to enable them to green the country. 

The group urged members of the public to embrace the initiative of tree planting, avoid cutting down trees and charcoal burning to better the environment.

They noted that they are looking forward to training individuals and groups on how to establish nursery beds and other matters concerning environmental conservation adding that it requires concerted effort to make the nation a better place by taking care of the environment.

The Meru North Forest advisory officer Charles Kavutha urged members of the public to develop private nurseries and cautioned farmers against planting eucalyptus trees especially around water catchment areas and urged them to protect those areas at any cost.

The officer noted that they are strategizing on how to involve institutions of learning especially primary and secondary schools in tree growing to realize 30% forest cover.

Kavutha further revealed that he is working with chiefs, sub-chiefs and police to regulate the rate of tree harvesting and urged the residents to seek permission from their office before engaging in tree harvesting especially when using power saws.

Courtesy K.N.A