Thousands of Kenyans including men, women, and young people joined in person (400 walkers) and virtually in a 10-kilometre walk on 19 th November 2022, which was organised by the ILMAMUSI Community Forest Association (CFA) in Mukogodo.

Mukogodo Forest is the largest forest in Laikipia County, covering 30,189 hectares of natural forest and it is one of the project sites for The Restoration Initiative (TRI) in Kenya. The walk was held to raise awareness about TRI, the Mukogodo forest restoration and tree planting, as well  as to motivate local support to restore lands and forest landscapes in the Mukogodo ecosystem. 

Out of a total 372 gazetted forests in the country, Mukogodo is one of the few remaining dry forests and the only one under exclusive management of an Indigenous community, the Yaaku.

FAO, through TRI, has been supporting ILMAMUSI CFA’s operations and project activities aimed at restoration of the Mukogodo landscape (tree planting, grass reseeding, capacity building of CFA members among others) and the “Walk Wild” event.

Participants in the walk were informed about the achievements of The Restoration Initiative and its activities in Mukogodo forest landscape. The walk also provided an opportunity to raise funds to support forest landscape restoration within the Mukogodo region of Kenya. 

 Virtual participants joined in thousands as viewers of the event via social and mass media platforms of Facebook, Twitter, Whatsapp, Instagram, radio and television.

The TRI project is being implemented through partners in Kenya among which are the Food and Agricultural Organisation of the United Nations (FAO), Kenya Forestry Reseach Institute (KEFRI), Laikipia Wildlife Forum (LWF), Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS), Kenya Forest Service (KFS), Borana Conservancy, Lewa Wildlife Conservancy (LWC), County Government of Laikipia, African Nature Investors (ANI), Laikipia Conservancies Association (LCA), Northern Rangeland Trust (NRT), IMPACT, community lands among many others.

A total of 1500 indigenous tree seedlings were also planted after the walk at Lokusero secondary school by all the participants.

The seedlings were provided by KFS and some of the seedlings also purchased by ILMAMUSI CFA.