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Land in Kericho County claimed by the Ogiek community remains public forest, Environment Cabinet Secretary Deborah Barasa confirmed.
Speaking to the National Assembly Committee on Lands, CS Barasa addressed a parliamentary petition filed by Ogiek squatters. The community sought to convert parcel L.R. No. 25005 into community land for human settlement. Petitioners cited historical land injustices and relied on Legal Notice No. 328 of January 2001. Read Full Article Here
However, official ministry records show that the contested parcel falls within the gazetted South Western Mau Forest. The area was original gazetted as a Forest Reserve under Proclamation No. 44 of 1932. It later became a Central Forest via Legal Notice No. 174 of May 1964, spanning 224,197 acres.
While Gazette Notice No. 891 of January 2001 proposed altering forest boundaries, government authorities never completed the regularization process. Consequently, the land was never legally degazetted or excised.
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CS Barasa emphasized that strict legal procedures govern any boundary adjustments. Section 34 of the Forest Conservation and Management Act requires formal recommendations from the Kenya Forest Service board. The process also demands strict environmental safeguards, parliamentary committee evaluation, National Assembly approval, and final gazettement by the Cabinet Secretary.
Until all statutory requirements are fully satisfied, L.R. No. 25005 remains protected public forest land under government custody.
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