Nature Blog

By Joshua Sese

The Cherangani Hills Key Biodiversity Area (KBA) on the western ridge of the Rift Valley, traverses across Elgeyo Marakwet, Trans Nzoia, and West Pokot counties.  Cherengani Hills KBA is characterized by an undulating terrain with steep hills and a series of expansive indigenous forests, savanna and grassland habitats. The site is part of the Eastern Afromontane Biodiversity Hotspot, and one of Kenya’s five main ‘water towers’. It hosts the headwaters for Kerio and Turkwel rivers draining into Lake Turkana, and river Nzoia draining into Lake Victoria.

Cherangani Hills ecosystem is home to globally threatened and endemic flora such as Dendrosenecio cheranganiensis – EN and Parasol tree Polyscias kikuyuensis – NT, and regionally threatened fauna such as De Brazza’s Monkey (Cercopithecus neglectus), Crowned Eagle (Stephanoaetus coronatus – NT), and perhaps the elusive Lammergeier or Bearded Vulture (Gypaetus barbatus – NT), among others.  Most of the highland forests are gazetted as Forest Reserves.

Despite the undoubted significance of the KBA, impacts of climate change and increased anthropogenic pressures in the region continuously threaten its persistence. The human activities affecting the KBA include illegal logging, charcoal production, and encroachment and land clearing for agriculture and settlement. Unsustainable land use practices such as overgrazing, land fragmentation and clearing, have led to soil erosion and degradation. Unchecked encroachment in the KBA has led to frequent human-wildlife conflict incidents. Forest fires are frequent, especially during the dry season, stemming from slash-and-burn land preparation methods, use of fire during honey harvesting, and burning of grazing land to allow for pasture regeneration. Inadequate awareness of the KBA’s ecological significance and poor enforcement of safeguarding measures also impede conservation efforts.

Chebororwa Sekemiat Site Support Group (SSG) is the local community organization championing the conservation of the Cherangani Hills KBA. The SSG actively engages in tree planting and growing, biodiversity monitoring, and conservation awareness creation. It undertakes environmental education through school outreach programmes, community gatherings, and marking national and global awareness days such as World Environment Day. Chebororwa Sekemiat SSG also promotes sustainable community livelihood activities such as beekeeping and tree seedling production.

Nairobi hosted the inaugural Africa Climate Summit (ACS23) on September 4-6, 2023. Organized by the African Union and hosted by the Government of Kenya, the Summit brought together 17 African Heads of State and Government and other leaders from across the continent and globe, including the Secretary-General of the United Nations António Guterres and the President of the European Union Ursula von der Leyen.

Under the theme “Driving green growth and climate finance solutions for Africa and the World”, the Summit focused on five key areas: climate finance, loss and damage, energy transition and green jobs, sustainable agriculture and nature-based solutions. 

The outcome document of the Summit was the Nairobi Declaration on Climate Change and Call to Action. It will form the basis for Africa’s position during the Conference of the Parties (COP28) of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change in Dubai in November. In the Declaration, African countries committed to and called for:

• Accelerating all efforts to reduce carbon emissions to align with goals set forth in the 2015 Paris Agreement (such as limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius or less);
• Upholding commitments to a fair and accelerated process of phasing down coal, and abolishment of all fossil fuel subsidies;
• Developed countries to fulfil their commitment to provide $100 billion per year (pledged 14 years ago) in climate financing by 2023;
• Swift operationalization of the Loss and Damage Fund to help developing countries cope with the impacts of climate change – by COP28;
• Restructuring of the climate financing architecture to be responsive to Africa’s needs. For example, restructuring of existing debt and fair and flexible terms for climate financing;
• Establishment of a carbon taxation regime, including a carbon tax on fossil fuel trade, maritime transport and aviation, that may also be augmented by a global financial transaction tax;
• Global leaders to join Africa in seizing this unprecedented opportunity to accelerate global decarbonization, while pursuing equality and shared prosperity.

Notably, the Declaration recognises the role of nature and biodiversity in resolving the climate crisis. There are six references to “biodiversity” and four to “nature.” In clause 24, African leaders commit themselves to “Strengthening actions to halt and reverse biodiversity loss, deforestation, desertification, as well as to restore degraded lands to achieve land degradation neutrality.”

Climate Finance commitments

During the Summit, $4.5 billion was committed to climate adaptation and mitigation. Pledges made were from governments, businesses, and development partners. The United States pledged $3 billion annually for adaptation, as part of its President’s Emergency Plan for Adaptation and Resilience (PREPARE) initiative. The United Arab Emirates pledged $1 billion for climate action in Africa. The African Development Bank (AfDB) committed $1 billion for the African Adaptation Initiative and $100 million for the Climate Resilience Adaptation Finance and Technology Transfer Facility.

It was agreed that the Africa Climate Summit will be held every two years.