Forest users in Marakwet have received beehives worth shs. 280, 000, in a bid to promote eco-friendly income generating activities.
The 40 modern beehives were presented to two groups from Marakwet East and West by the Green Zones development support project manager, Mr. Jerome Mwanzia at a ceremony held at Kaptabuk primary school in Marakwet West.
Mr. Mwanzia said that with the new approach of participatory forest management as envisaged by the Forest Act 2005, communities living near gazette government forests are assisted to come up with income generating activities that would ease pressure on demand for forest products such as firewood and timber.
He said that through the African Development Bank/GoK funded Green zones development support project, community initiatives such as use of biogas, solar energy and planting of high value trees such as gravelia and fruit trees are supported.
Mr. Mwanzia encouraged communities to join Community Forest Associations and put up tree nurseries and raise indigenous seedlings which they can sell to KFS to rehabilitate degraded forest and water catchment areas and exotic fast growing varieties for establishment of on farm woodlots.
Two schools to be assisted in establishing biogas projects for use in cooking and laboratory experiments are to be identified in either district.
The modern beehives can produce three harvests of honey per year if well managed, according to Mr. Hillary Koech, from the Christian Intermediate Technology Centre Kapsabet which manufactures them.
Source: http://www.kassfm.co.ke
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