Mau Forest: A Decades-Long Environmental and Political Battle

The Mau Forest Complex, Kenya's largest indigenous forest and a critical water tower, has been at the heart of a bitter dispute that has profoundly shaped the nation's political landscape for decades. Conservation efforts in this vital ecosystem have repeatedly clashed with human settlement and agricultural expansion, leading to forced evictions and significant political ramifications.

One of the most notable political consequences of the Mau Forest issue was the fracturing of the alliance between former Prime Minister Raila Odinga and current President William Ruto. Their close working relationship, forged as early as 2005, began to deteriorate after the disputed 2007 General Election and the subsequent formation of the Grand Coalition Government.

Raila Odinga's firm stance on the restoration of the Mau Forest, which included supervising the eviction of hundreds of settlers, cost him crucial support in the Rift Valley during the 2013 General Election. Many of the evicted settlers were from the Kipsigis Kalenjin sub-group, a community that had largely supported Odinga in 2007. This decision was seen by some as a politically suicidal move, yet Odinga maintained his position, prioritising environmental conservation.

William Ruto, then a Cabinet Minister, reportedly incited his community against Odinga over the evictions, further widening the rift between the two leaders. When Uhuru Kenyatta and William Ruto came to power in 2013, residents in the South Rift regions reportedly re-invaded parts of the forest, a move that angered the Maa community who depend on the Mau for their livelihoods.

Historical Context and Governance Challenges

Evictions from the Mau Forest date back to the colonial period when the British administration attempted to remove the indigenous Ogiek tribe. Since Kenya's independence in 1963, successive governments have grappled with the challenge of deforestation in the Mau, often initiating evictions, forest reclamation, and rehabilitation drives.

The Mau Forest Complex spans approximately 400,000 hectares and is the source of 12 major rivers, including those that feed Lake Turkana, Lake Victoria, and Lake Nakuru. It is considered Kenya's most important water tower, providing 75% of the country's fresh water supplies. However, it has suffered decades of deforestation due to illegal logging, settlement, and encroachment.

The integrity of the Mau Forest has been compromised by factors such as unplanned human settlements, agricultural expansion, charcoal burning, and poor land-use policies, often exacerbated by political patronage and irregular land allocations. Between 1990 and 2010, Kenya lost approximately 6.5% of its forest cover, or around 241,000 hectares. Satellite data indicates that the Mau lost about 25% of its tree cover between 1984 and 2020 due to human pressure.

Laws, Policy, and Ongoing Conservation Efforts

The lead agency in forest management in Kenya is the Kenya Forest Service (KFS), operating under the Forest Conservation and Management Act, 2016. The government has launched various restoration efforts, including the Mau Forest Restoration Plan (2009) and the 10 Billion Trees Campaign, initiated in 2020, which aims to plant 10 billion trees by 2030.

A new integrated conservation and livelihoods programme, the Mau Forest Complex Integrated Conservation and Livelihood Improvement Programme (MCF-ICLIP), was launched in August 2025. This ten-year plan aims to restore 3,800 hectares, equivalent to 4 million tree seedlings, in its first phase, and includes providing alternative livelihoods such as potato farming, bee keeping, and bamboo growing to over 80,000 households.

The African Court on Human and Peoples' Rights ruled in May 2017 that Kenya had violated the Ogiek community's rights by expelling them from their ancestral lands in the Mau Forest. The court recognised the Ogiek's deep cultural connection to the forest and their traditional management practices.

Evidence and Data

• Forest Cover: Kenya's tree cover stands at 12.13% and forest cover at 8.83% as of the National Forest Resources Assessment Report 2021, an increase from 5.9% in 2018.
• Deforestation Rate: Between 1990 and 2010, Kenya lost an average of 12,050 hectares of forest per year.
• Mau Forest Size: The Mau Forest Complex spans approximately 400,000 hectares (988,500 acres).
• Water Source: The Mau Forest feeds 12 major rivers, sustaining over 5 million people.
• Economic Impact: Continued destruction of the Mau Forest could lead to significant economic losses in agriculture, tourism, and energy sectors.

Risks and Implications

The degradation of the Mau Forest has severe environmental consequences, including reduced streamflow, increased surface runoff and erosion, flash floods, and decreased water quality in downstream rivers and lakes. This impacts biodiversity, leading to increased wildlife mortality and threatening endangered species.

The loss of forest cover also contributes to climate change indicators such as unpredictable rainfall, protracted droughts, and extremely hot seasons, affecting food, economic, health, and environmental security for local communities. The continued destruction of the Mau Forest could compromise the livelihoods of millions of Kenyans and potentially lead to the collapse of the tourism industry.

What to Watch

The implementation of the Mau Forest Complex Integrated Conservation and Livelihood Improvement Programme (MCF-ICLIP) will be crucial in balancing conservation with community needs. The government's commitment to planting 40 million trees and rehabilitating rivers and wetlands within the Mau, alongside providing alternative livelihoods, will be key indicators of progress. The ongoing efforts to secure forest boundaries and resolve land issues, including the beaconing process in Mau East, will also be important to monitor.