From the 1920s to January 2018, Elburgon town in Nakuru County enjoyed a vibrant economy supported by the lucrative timber industry.
The town stood as a citadel of the timber business in the South Rift region with pride for its artistic wooden and tin houses.
But the government banned logging in public forests to the detriment of the town that heavily depended on the lumbering industry. Today, the town is a pale shadow of its former self.
Despite the government partially lifting the moratorium on logging rusty business premises, low population and slow business characterise the once vibrant town.
For close to a century, Elburgon was a vibrant town when the Mau Forest Complex was intact with both plantations and indigenous tree cover.
Most of the rich men in Nakuru and beyond, among them the late Cabinet Minister Njenga Karume and the prominent businessman Stephen Kung’u, originated from Elburgon, where they honed their business acumen.
However, the fortunes of the small town dwindled in 1987 when their businesses were interrupted and large chunks of Mau Forest were hived off for human settlement.
Facilities such as Hotel Eel were left to die while hundreds of workers converted government land into a slum where they live with their families.
A spot check by the Kenya News Agency revealed that hundreds of residents, especially the youth in the town who depended on logging, sawmilling and charcoal burning, have been left jobless.
Former Elburgon Ward Councillor Joram Kariuki claimed that sawmillers, timber yard dealers and carpenters in the region were not benefitting from the decision to lift the logging ban due to stringent tendering conditions imposed by the Kenya Forest Service (KFS).
Kariuki, himself a sawmiller, has petitioned the Kenya Forest Service to restore the previous system where permits could be issued to individuals harvesting as little as 20 trees, as the present system favoured large-scale sawmillers.
“We are urging the Kenya Forest Service to consider small-scale millers in the allocation of the permits. When the ban on logging was partially lifted, most of the sawmillers could not revive their enterprises as sawmillers from other regions began harvesting trees in Elburgon forests at the expense of the local sawmillers,” stated the former civic leader.
Those who worked as casual workers at Timsales Timber Industry in Elburgon, for instance, were suspended. At least 15,000 people were affected in Elburgon town.
The ex-civic leader said things took a turn for the worse when the ban was imposed.
“When the ban was imposed, business in the town dropped drastically as nearly 20 sawmills closed down,” said Kariuki.
In July 2023, President William Ruto announced the government’s decision to lift the ban on logging after six years.
He said the decision to lift the moratorium on logging was prompted by the need to open up the economies of areas that depend on forest products.
Elburgon was home to dozens of sawmills harvesting trees from the Eastern Mau Forest.
The youth in this region worked as loaders, power saw operators, transporters and millers.
Others affected were people who performed manual duties such as clearing milling zones.
Kariuki noted that although the ban worked well against a looming environmental disaster due to massive deforestation, their livelihoods were left hanging in the balance as they had to seek new ways of survival.
The former civic leader and his former workmates shifted to agriculture, though according to him, income from this venture is by far below what they used to make in the sawmills.
One Ndung’u Mavuno also appealed to the Kenya Forest Service to review the tendering requirement before one could be allowed to log, as the condition locked out small-scale sawmillers.
“They should allow small-scale sawmillers who can only afford between 20 to 100 trees. The tendering process makes it very expensive for locals who previously relied on this industry,” stated Mavuno.
He, however, voiced his support for the proposed new regulations aimed at streamlining the timber industry by tightening control over exports, imports, and the grading of forest products.
The policies outlined in the Forest Conservation and Management (Export and Import) Rules, 2025, and the Forest Conservation and Management (Grading and Valuation) Regulations, 2025, were expected to impact timber prices, trade, and supply chains across the country.
Kenya has long been a significant producer of timber, with forests in regions such as the Mau, Kakamega, and Aberdares providing wood for both domestic use and export.
However, the industry has faced challenges, including illegal logging, unsustainable harvesting, and fluctuating prices due to inconsistent regulations.
The new policies are designed to bring order to the sector by ensuring that all timber is properly graded and that both imports and exports follow strict guidelines.
Under the proposed regulations, traders and exporters must obtain permits from the Kenya Forest Service (KFS) before transporting timber.
Exporters are also required to present a grading certificate, proving that their timber meets specified quality standards. These measures aim to prevent the export of substandard wood and increase the value of Kenyan timber in international markets.
By Emily Kadzo and Elvin Abere
