President William Ruto has alleged that Kenya has not been successful in tree planting for failing to pray before engaging in the exercise.
According to the President, tree planting has both spiritual and physical connotations, which should be taken seriously.
“I was honoured to join the list of world leaders who have planted trees at the Groove of Nations Jerusalem Forest. That event has given me a new meaning for tree planting; it is not only a good thing to protect our environment, but it is also Biblical and it is also spiritual,” Ruto said.
“I found that we have to pray before we plant trees. We’ve always tried to plant trees in Kenya and our success has been mixed. I think because we didn’t have the element of prayer. Now that we do, I am very confident that we will succeed in our plan to plant 15 billion trees in the next ten years.”
The President now wants Kenyans to always pray before engaging in tree-planting exercises.
Ruto’s tree-planting initiative
In December 2022, Ruto launched a tree restoration program aimed at combating the effects of climate change in the country.
The initiative aims to plant 15 billion trees by 2032 in a bid to reduce greenhouse emissions, stop and reverse deforestation, and restore 5.1 million hectares of deforested and degraded landscapes.
The government also launched a program to distribute 1,000 tonnes of seeds to 18 seed centres across the country, which will produce 15 billion seedlings by 2032.
