Objectives and technical assistance in Kenya

AIM4Forests supports Kenya in strengthening its forest and restoration monitoring systems to meet national and international commitments on climate action, biodiversity, and ecosystem restoration. The programme focuses on four mutually reinforcing areas of technical assistance:

1. Enhancing Kenya’s capacity to access carbon finance

AIM4Forests supports Kenya’s efforts to improve annual forest monitoring and produce robust estimates of emissions, removals, and emission reductions. This includes updating activity data, refining the Forest Carbon Calculation Database, providing tailored guidance on the operational aspects of Article 6 of the Paris Agreement, and emerging carbon market mechanisms. These efforts help Kenya advance toward participation in initiatives such as the LEAF Coalition and align with high-integrity standards like ART-TREES.

2. Implementing the National Forest Monitoring System (NFMS) Improvement Plan

To strengthen the foundations of Kenya’s forest monitoring system, AIM4Forests facilitates data harmonization across institutions, enhances forest field inventory data to reduce uncertainty in emissions factors, standardizes approaches for activity data generation, and supports national discussions on data archiving and sharing. This work advances institutional coordination and ensures the NFMS is fully operational, transparent, and sustainable.

3. Empowering youth through the Young Forest Champions Initiative

AIM4Forests mentors a new cohort of 10 young champions, promoting gender balance and regional diversity. Champions receive training on forest monitoring, restoration, and climate action; participate in FAO e-learning; engage in national workshops; join a South–South exchange; and produce communication products such as blogs, videos, and podcasts. The programme strengthens youth leadership and builds national capacity for long-term environmental stewardship.

4. Advancing restoration monitoring and reporting

To support Kenya’s restoration targets—including restoring 10.6 million hectares of degraded ecosystems—AIM4Forests strengthens monitoring systems aligned with the Kunming–Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (KM-GBF) Target 2 and the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration. This includes reviewing national platforms and existing restoration data, supporting the development of centralized data management systems, enhancing verification and data security, and providing extensive training on tools such as FERM, Ground, SEPAL, and Earth Map. Kenya also serves as a case study for developing guidance on monitoring restoration in freshwater ecosystems.

Complementing ongoing forest monitoring efforts, the Country-Led Planning (CLP) process has been introduced in Kenya to strengthen the institutionalization of the National Forest Monitoring System (NFMS). By engaging stakeholders, the CLP approach helps validate findings from the Data Needs Assessment, build functional capacity, and embed the NFMS within national institutions. In parallel, the AIM4Commodities initiative promotes transparent and sustainable value chains, supporting key agricultural sectors to meet compliance requirements under zero-deforestation regulations, including the EU Deforestation Regulation.