Forest and Landscape Restoration Mechanism

The Restoration Initiative: Restoration of arid and semi-arid lands (ASAL) of Kenya through bio-enterprise development and other incentives

©@FAO/ FLRM

Project's full title	The Restoration Initiative: Restoration of arid and semi-arid lands (ASAL) of Kenya through bio-enterprise development and other incentives
Introduction	The Restoration Initiative (TRI) is a joint effort by FAO, UNEP and IUCN to support Forest and Land Restoration (FLR) in ten countries worldwide. The initiative is implemented in Cameroon, Central African Republic, China, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Pakistan, São Tomé and Príncipe and the United Republic of Tanzania, aiming to reverse land degradation and enhance ecosystem resilience.
Country	Kenya
Start date	01/01/2018
End date	30/06/2025
Status	Completed
Recipient / Target Areas	Kenya
Budget	Total TRI programme budget: USD 255 million (including co-funding) \| GEF Project grant: USD 4 157 340 \| Child project budget including co-financing: USD 16 657 340
Project Code	GCP /KEN/090/GFF
Objective / Goal	The project, under the global TRI programme, aimed to restore deforested and degraded lands through the FLR approach and enhance the socioeconomic development of local communities through the development of bio-enterprises of non-timber forest products (NTFPs) in ASALs. Its goal was to reduce the overall proportion of degraded land by 20 percent in the areas targeted by the project.
Partners	Kenya Forestry Research Institute (KEFRI) Kenya Forest Service (KFS) National Museums of Kenya (NMK) Laikipia Wildlife Forum (LWF) East African Wildlife Society (EAWS) Laikipia Permaculture Centre (LPC) Community Forest Associations (CFAs) Northern Rangelands Trust (NRT) E4Impact Foundation National Alliance of Community Forestry Associations (NACOFA) County Governments of Laikipia, Marsabit, and Isiolo Conservancies Leading organization: FAO
Beneficiaries	The Mount Kulal Biosphere Reserve in Marsabit county The Mukogodo forest and landscape in Laikipia and Isiolo counties From the local communities to government stakeholders, a total of 57 466 people (30 121 men and 27 345 women) have benefited from project interventions directly.
Activities	The integrated approach of the TRI Kenya project will contribute to the restoration of forest and rangeland areas to ensure that communities continue to benefit from their forests’ multiple ecosystem services. The development of bio-enterprises will build on the participatory methodology Market Analysis and Development (MA&D) to help diversify sources of income and generate incentives for FLR. The project aims to improve the sustainable management of 152 661 ha (through improved management plans) and directly restore 8 700 ha of deforested and degraded lands in the two targeted landscapes. This will involve implementing sustainable land management practices and improving water management, which will ensure long-lasting benefits from sustainable use of the land and protected biodiversity. It will also indirectly lead to the restoration of 55 352 ha of degraded lands in the pilot sites and more through consolidated legal and policy framework, increased coordination and improved knowledge on FLR.
Impact	193 931 hectares (ha) of landscapes put under improved management 4 700 ha of degraded land put under restoration
Contact	FAO FLRM focal point Benjamin DeRidder Christophe Besacier National coordinator Meshack Muga National focal point James Kamiri Ndufa The Restoration Initiative website
More on this topic	This project is part of the GEF 6 funding cycle.
Related publications	The Restoration Initiative: 2023 Year in Review 30/11/2024 In its fifth year of implementation, this annual publication showcases The Restoration Initiative's achievements at the programme level, such as enhanced partnerships, dedicated support across countries to ensure high-quality FLR outcomes, and a platform to share and exchange knowledge with the global restoration community. The Restoration Initiative: 2022 Year in Review 23/05/2023 In its fourth year, The Restoration Initiative (TRI) achieved significant successes despite ongoing COVID-19 challenges. With lifted travel restrictions, TRI partners collaborated effectively to meet cross-programmatic goals and learn from one another. 2022 offered a renewed focus on locally led restoration, community engagement, and fresh perspectives. The Restoration Initiative: 2021 Year in Review 30/09/2022 In its third year of implementation, progress remained encouraging despite ongoing COVID-19 challenges. As restrictions eased, participants returned to the field, leveraging 2020’s analyses, policy recommendations, and restoration plans to accelerate actions. TRI's global partners also launched an initiative to close the investment gap for young enterprises using nature-based solutions and continued to advance knowledge and capacity-building in forest landscape restoration. The Restoration Initiative: 2020 Year in Review 02/11/2021 The 2020 review offers a snapshot of progress and key stories from the second year of The Restoration Initiative (TRI). Supported by the Global Environment Facility and led by IUCN in partnership with FAO and UNEP, TRI helps ten Asian and African countries achieve restoration goals. TRI advanced initiatives like an online course on forest landscape restoration with Yale, a new tool for assessing biodiversity threats, and a mentorship program for restoration-based business proposals. The Restoration Initiative Year in Review 2019 02/07/2020 The Restoration Initiative Year in Review 2019 details progress and stories from the first year of implementing the Restoration Initiative (TRI) programme. Supported by the Global Environment Facility, this pioneering programme, led by IUCN in partnership with FAO and UNEP, aids ten Asian and African countries in achieving shared restoration goals.