The semi-arid Municipality of Mandera has won a prestigious Green City Award presented by the International Association of Horticultural Producers (AIPH) at the Royal Jaabeurs in Utrecht, Netherlands.
Achieved by its efforts in The Mandera Green Initiative over the past eight years, the town won in the category of ‘Living Green for Climate Change.’
Speaking after winning the prestigious award, Mandera County Governor Mohamed Khalif Adan said that the initiative was launched to address the deforestation that had been mostly caused by the trampling of refugees who occupied the Mandera East Constituency area.
“During the collapse of the Somali Government, thousands of refugees crossed the border to Kenya. They really destroyed our land completely. In fact, this is the area we used to have the refugee camp.” Governor Adan stated.
He further cited that the occupancy by the refugees also made it hard to control the area during the initial stages of the initiative but they soldiered on.
The initiative has so far not only transformed the area from a dry, barren land to a thriving greenery but also provided jobs to over 1300 residents in the region including vulnerable youth and women.
Before the initiative was started, women in the area often relied on unlawful and unsafe working conditions to provide for their families but that has since changed.
“I used to carry boxes of cooking oil and running away from customs officers for 15 years trying to feed my family.” One of the women residents said.
In the years since the initiative was launched, the trees have become a part of parcel of many vulnerable residents lives including widows, orphans and the poor as they need constant nurturing to thrive in the semi-desert conditions.
Acknowledging that the initiative is fully funded by the Mandera County Governnment, Adan said that the project has been very expensive but the returns are worth it.
“Unlike other parts of the country, in Mandera you don't just plant a tree and leave it, you have to nurture it for at least seven years.”
The active community involvement has since left the town greener and cooler which attracted the Global AHIP Awards’ attention leading to their eventual win.
President William Ruto has been actively advocating for more tree-planting projects in the country as the world mitigates against Climate Change.
