President William Ruto says he lifted the ban on logging to create jobs for Kenya's youth. But climate activists are pushing back on what they see as his doublespeak on climate justice.Barely a year since he took office, President William Ruto has lifted the ban Kenya imposed on logging to conserve water six years ago. The reversal, according to Ruto, was motivated by a need to create jobs.

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"If people will import furniture from foreign countries, we shall tax the items, because we want those furniture items made by young people from the Republic of Kenya, and this is why we have decided to open up the forest and harvest timber so that we can create jobs for our youth," Ruto said.

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Ruto also said Kenya would continue with its plan to plant 15 billion trees in 10 years.

Climate activists say the lifting of the ban that saw a gain of 3% forest cover amounts to a major setback.

Climate activists push back

Ruto's sentiments were reiterated by the country's environment cabinet secretary Soipan Tuya. Tuya said people who have waited since 2018 to harvest trees in commercial forests now have an opportunity. Logging will be controlled and supervised to ensure that loggers do not extend their activities beyond the areas marked for commercial logging, the cabinet secretary said.

"The 150,000 hectares are in parts of our gazetted forests, only there will we allow for harvesting of commercial, exotic trees but not in indigenous forests," Tuya said.

Greenpeace Africa activist Tracy Makheti says the government has erred in rushing to allow people to cut trees as there are other means to create jobs for youth.

"If the government really wanted to create job opportunities for Kenyans, they would look at opportunities that have a future," Makheti told DW.

"If we cut down our trees when our forest coverage is barely 10% in the next five or six years ... we will come back and start crying [over] the same issue."

Reversal of climate gains

When the ban on logging was imposed in 2018, Kenya's forest coverage was at about 5.8%.

Last year, the government launched an ambitious plan to plant 15 billion trees. The campaign dubbed #JazaMiti aims to improve forest coverage beyond the current 8.8%.

A return to logging could send #JazaMiti down the drain, Makheti told DW .

She believes that drastic measures need to be in place to ensure a 30% tree cover target within 10 years. The three key steps would be to reinstate the ban on logging, focus on alternatives to timber, and focus on forest regeneration, according to Makheti.

An online petition

Ruto who currently chairs the Committee of African Heads of State and Government on Climate Change is now under fire for doublespeak on climate justice.

"He has been going round the world telling people how Africans are championing for climate justice the same president again lifting the ban on logging, Makheti told DW.

During the COP27 in Egypt, the Kenyan leader promised world leaders that "carbon Credits will be Kenya's next big export.”

On a recent trip to France, Ruto again called for climate justice in Africa.

An online petition has garnered close on 40,000 signatures. The Greenpeace Africa campaign dubbed "Hands off Kenya's Forests."

Edited by Benita van Eyssen

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jul 25, 2023 08:00 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).