Following a move by the government to suspend export of raw wood veneers, the Association of Farm Forestry Smalls Holder Producers Association of Kenya (FF-SPAK) has protested the move as retrogressive.
This, they said, would lock out investors in the industry and consequently affect many farmers who have invested in smallholder tree production farms across the country.
According to the association’s Chairman Mr. Benjamin Karanja, there was a need to restore stability in the commercial forest value chain through a predictable policy environment that prioritizes the rights of individual Kenyans growers over large manufacturing farms.
Speaking at the Boiman area in Ol-Joro Orok Constituency of Nyandarua county, the association has called for dialogue between stakeholders during the suspension period in an effort to reach for the best agreement that offers best results in terms of social-economic and ecological benefits from trees on farms.
The suspension of the exports of raw wood veneers according to the association, will affect the ability to meet their basic needs.
“We want the government to create the right environment for legitimate investors in the tree industry through the right incentives so as to ensure that communities benefit from smallholder commercial tree growing investments,” said Mr. Karanja
Recently, the government through the Ministry of Environment Climate Change and Forestry announced the suspension of exports of raw veneer materials.
The Ministry through a press statement by Cabinet Secretary Eden Duale further directed the Kenya Forest Service (KFS) not to issue any ‘No Objection Letter’ for export and maintained that this suspension is a resolute measure in support of the National Landscape and Ecosystem Restoration Strategy.
Duale noted that this strategy, which aims to restore 10.6 million hectares of degraded landscapes by planting 15 billion trees, is a testament to the Government’s unwavering commitment to environmental sustainability.
While supporting the tree planting and growing initiative, FF-SPAK said this was a great programme that would benefit tree farmers especially in private farms.
While issuing the notice, the CS noted that by halting the export of raw wood veneer, the Government intends to curb this practice, ensuring trees are allowed to mature and contribute effectively to the national restoration goals and expressed the Government’s commitment to achieving the ambitious 30 percent tree cover is unwavering.
By Antony Mwangi
