Karura: From sacred forest to land grabbers’ den and pastime paradise

It is no wonder that Nairobi was a swamp when the railway made its way inland towards the end of the 19th century. The twin water towers of Ngong Forest and Karura Forest were the source of rivers flowing into Nairobi basin which in turn emptied its waters into aquifers of the Athi and Kapiti plains.

Archaelogical excavations suggest that Karura Forest was occupied at various periods by the honey-gathering Ogiek, the pastoralist Maasai and lastly the agriculturalist Kikuyu. It is said that this is where the Kikuyu held certain cultural and religious rites, particularly in the caves within the forest.

As early as 1901, the colonial government recognised Karura Forest and the nearby City Park as sacred lands and forbid any occupation.

Karura Forest, measuring some 1,063 hectares, is the largest urban forest within a city in the world. It is located north of central Nairobi between Limuru and Kiambu Roads and borders the suburbs of Muthaiga, Gigiri, Runda, Ridgeways, Mathare North, Peponi and New Muthaiga.

The portion to the west of Limuru Road is known as Sigiria Forest. It is an important carbon sink for Nairobi as the trees convert carbon dioxide into oxygen.

Wildlife present in the forest include monkey species, bush baby, bushbuck, bush pig, porcupine, duicker, genet, dik dik, Africa civet and East African epauletted fruit bat.

There is a wide variety of bird species. Plant species include Oleo europaea (var. africana), Croton megalocarpus, Warbug ugandensis, Brachyleana huillensis and Uvaridendron anisatum.

There are other facilities such as a waterfall, bicycle tours, Amani Gardens for functions, up market restaurant River Café, and a children’s education centre.

The forest was gazetted as a reserve in 1932 when the colonial government sought to use it as a source of wood fuel for the Kenya Uganda Railway steam locomotives. Kikuyu women would harvest timber for sale to the railways.

The trees were replaced with exotic species from Australia (mostly eucalyptus).

During the State of Emergency in the 1950s, Mau Mau insurgents hid in caves within Karura Forest and it is said that the cold-blooded murder of Senior Chief Waruhiu in 1952 may have been launched from here.

In 1989, Joseph Nyaga who was then Minister for Environment under the Moi government, degazetted part of the forest.

Between 1994 and 1998 a total of 564 hectares of the forest were secretly allocated to 64 different companies for housing projects.

Around 1995, plans were submitted for the development of a housing estate within the forest but opposition by local residents caused the plans to be shelved temporarily. This was the beginning of a long drawn out battle to save the forest.

The projects resurfaced again in 1998 when the Forest Department was issued with a quit notice by private developers who started clearing the forest.

This ignited fierce protests by environmentalists led by the late Nobel Laureate Prof Wangari Maathai. The protests turned violent as the police tried to restrain the angry demonstrators and machinery worth over Sh80 million was destroyed.

The following year Prof Maathai led a group of women to plant trees in the forest but security guards reacted with brutal force injuring many women including Prof Maathai who was taken to Nairobi Hospital.

Although the then Attorney-General Amos Wako apologised to Prof Maathai, promising an inquiry into the incident, the police were reluctant to investigate the matter.

Prof Maathai received support from various local and international organisations including Time Magazine which named her Hero of the Week in 1998, while UNEP Executive Director Klaus Topfer threatened to relocate their headquarters from Nairobi if the forest was destroyed.

In the meantime, the Government went on a public campaign to demonise Prof Maathai and her supporters but University of Nairobi students continued to hold demonstrations for the preservation of the forest.

Eventually the developers shelved their housing plans for lack of public support but the allocations still stood in place.

Dubious titles

The new government of President Mwai Kibaki passed a revised Forest Act in 2005 which made it more difficult for forest land to be degazetted.

Fearing that the new government would revoke their dubious titles, the developers started relinquishing their interests in the forest.

Under the revised Forest Act (2005) there was a provision for Community Forest Associations (CFA) to co-manage the resources with the Kenya Forest Service (KFS).

Recognising the continuing threat of illegal development of the forest, Muthaiga and Gigiri Residents Associations mooted the idea of a CFA for Karura in early 2009. Friends of Karura Forest (FKF) was registered on October 1, 2009 and a unique parastatal-stakeholder partnership was formed between KFS and FKF.

In early February 2010 the first MoU between KFS and FKF was signed concerning the installation of an electric fence to secure the forest. FKF raised the necessary funds and the fence was completed in September 2010.

A grand opening ceremony was held on February 25-26, 2011 to celebrate a Karura that was now “Secure, Safe and Serene” and open to visitors.

At the second FKF AGM on April 19, 2011, Prof Karanja Njoroge was elected chairman while Prof Maathai, Alice Macaire (the first chairperson) were anointed honorary patrons. Cristina Boeckle-Croze continued as vice-chair along with judge Sharad Rao.

In a period of five years since, this private-public partneship together with corporate and individual donors have transformed Karura Forest from a den of murders, muggings, torture and land grabbers into a popular recreational destination for Kenyans and tourists.

In 2015, the forest welcomed more than 600,000 visitors providing enough revenue to pay 70 staff and fund a community assistance programme to educate needy children in the neighbourhood.

FKF members provide their services free of charge. Karura Forest is a shining example of successful co-management of public resources but it has taken a great deal of pain, sacrifice and commitment to achieve the desired results.

Armchair philosophers, experts and activists will not win the war to restore our resources. We need to engage on a hands-on basis.

We must be objective and get our facts right. If we are only doing it for our egos, money or to gain political mileage, then our resources will continue to be plundered to no end.

The author is a retired banker and motorcycle enthusiast. E-mail [email protected]