The International Center of Insect Physiology and Ecology (ICIPE) together with its Partners is implementing an integrated project that aims at contributing to the conservation of the Kakamega Forest by tackling some of the major factors that lead to its destruction and loss.
Kakamega Forest is the only remaining rain forest in Kenya and the furthest East remnant of the Guineo-Congolean rain forest that is scattered across Zaire, Uganda and Kenya. Situated in western Kenya, 35 km from Lake Victoria, Kakamega Forest provides a unique sanctuary for a remarkable diversity of endemic plants, birds and insects not found anywhere else in the country. It is an important watershed for rivers that flow into Lake Victoria. The forest is also invaluable to the people living around it, many of whom depend on it for timber, fuelwood, herbal medicines, building materials and food. The Kakamega Forest is also important to the local community for a number of ceremonies and religious practices.
Kakamega Forest is the home to more than 300 species of birds, many species of insects and other arthropods, and the Black and White Colobus monkey, where it is said locally to be a good weather forcaster
Unfortunately, this valuable and unique forest is highly threatened due to encroachment for new land for agriculture and settlement and over-harvesting of forest resources. Half of the forest has been lost in the past 38 years and only 230 sq km is remaining.
- To build awareness among the local community and school children living in the immediate catchment area of Kakamega Forest about the importance of the forest biodiversity, its conservation, consequences of its destruction and alternative activities that could reduce pressure on the forest through community-driven environmental and conservation education
- To promote alternatives to forest-derived fuel wood and fodder, fuel wood energy-saving technologies for the local communities and encourage on-farm forestry.
- To promote alternative non-forest derived income-generating activities for the local communities including, apiculture (beekeeping) and sericulture (silk worm rearing) technologies, and cultivation of medicinal plants and provision of credit facilities.
- To improve on existing resource management of the forest through inventory and monitoring of selected taxa, training of parataxonomists, land use/ land cover trends, reforestation and enhancement of forest protection.
- To reduce the human population growth rates from the current 2.5 to 2.1% by the year 2020.
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