Bomet County Governor Prof. Hillary Barchok joined labor and social protection CS, Florence Bore, in a massive tree-planting exercise at Chepalungu Forest as a patriotic contribution towards national efforts to increase forest cover as the country aims to mitigate the devastating effects of climate change.
The Governor and the CS were joined by, among other leaders,Bomet Senator Wakili Hillary Sigei, Chepalungu MP Hon. Victor Koech, Bomet Central MP Richard Kilel, nominated senator, Hon. Joyce Korir, Bomet Women Rep Linet Chepkorir, Bomet County first Governor Isaac Ruto, county staff, and members of the public.
Governor Barchok called on Bomet residents to make tree-growing a continuous exercise and a responsibility for every resident.
The County Boss added that they are combining efforts with the national government to make sure that Chepalungu Forest is protected, urging the community around to play a pivotal role in conserving the forest.
The Governor thanked President Ruto for setting aside the day to plant trees and urged the people of Bomet to take the day seriously and plant more trees as rallied by the President. He stated that Bomet County is one of the leading counties in the country with a commendable percentage of forest cover and should lead the efforts of making Kenya attain the targeted percentage of forest cover.
On her part, Labor and Social Protection Cabinet Secretary Florence Bore urged Kenyans to support the government’s initiative to plant trees so that they can achieve the 2030 vision for environmental conservation. She added that people should occasionally plant trees as a measure to keep a good climate and to avoid deforestation.
The tree planting exercises marked Kenya’s commitment to plant 15 billion trees by the year 2032 with a key aim to restore 10.6 million hectares of forest.