Kenya’s Mazingira Day urges planting 100 Million fruit trees in schools

When Dr. Deborah Barasa, Cabinet Secretary for the Ministry of Environment, Climate Change and Forestry announced Mazingira Day on Friday, October 10, 2025, Kenya geared up for a massive school‑based tree‑planting drive.

The Ministry of Environment, Climate Change and Forestry, led by Barasa, called on every Kenyan to return to their former primary school and plant fruit trees as part of the nation’s "15 billion trees by 2032" ambition. The goal for the day: 100 million seedlings across 28 000 schools, a push that could lift the country’s tree‑cover from roughly 13 % today toward the constitutional 30 % target enshrined in Article 69 of the 2010 Constitution.

Background: Kenya’s Tree‑Cover Goal

Kenya’s Nationally Determined Contributions under the Paris Agreement call for a 32 % cut in greenhouse‑gas emissions by 2030, with deforestation responsible for about 22 % of the nation’s carbon output. The 2022 launch of the National Tree‑Planting Campaign set a clear target: 15 billion trees by 2032, of which 5 billion must be fruit‑bearing species to address both climate and nutrition challenges.

Since December 2022, the government reports 1.06 billion trees have already taken root, a figure verified by the Kenya Forest Service (Kenya Forest Service) in its annual audit. Yet survival rates have hovered around 60 % because many earlier plantings favored fast‑growing non‑native species.

The October 10 Nationwide Planting Event

On the morning of Mazingira Day, learners from every public and private primary school were instructed to assemble from 8:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. East African Time. The directive came from Julius Bitok, Principal Secretary for the Ministry of Education, who issued an official circular on October 9, 2025 to county education officers.

Each school was asked to host at least 100 seedlings, sourced from 1 800 community nurseries funded with KSh 2.3 billion (≈ USD 17.5 million) in the 2024‑2025 budget. The seedlings, ranging from mango and guava to indigenous citrus, were pre‑registered on the National Tree Growing and Restoration Platform, a digital tracking system that assigns a unique QR code to every tree.

During the four‑hour window, teachers, parent‑teacher association members, and volunteers supervised planting, while no formal lessons were allowed – a break from the usual school schedule designed to keep the focus on conservation.

Government Directives and Roles

Forestry Principal Secretary Gonga Mambi emphasized the nutritional angle, noting that "fruit trees will also go a long way in improving Kenya's nutritional status." He urged citizens to tend the seedlings beyond the holiday, warning that "Friday is just the starting point; we need to continue through the rains season to maximise survival."

The National Environment Management Authority (NEMA) will mobilise community‑based conservation committees to monitor survival rates, aiming for an 80 % threshold. Field officers from the Kenya Forest Service – a force of roughly 1 200 staff – will conduct spot checks and collect geo‑tagged photos every 30 days for the first year.

Technical assistance comes from the Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Research Organization (KALRO), which supplied species‑specific planting guides and soil‑preparation kits.

Health, Nutrition and Green‑Job Impacts

The shift toward fruit trees is meant to tackle two pressing issues: climate mitigation and food security. With an estimated 55 million Kenyans still facing micronutrient deficiencies, the Ministry of Environment projects that each mature fruit tree could provide up to 120 kg of fresh produce per year, translating into roughly 22 kilocalories per person per day in a densely populated community.

Beyond the health angle, the Agroforestry Strategy and the newly‑launched Bamboo Development Strategy are expected to generate 500 000 green jobs annually, ranging from nursery staff to value‑addition entrepreneurs processing fruit into jams, juices, and essential oils.

Monitoring, Funding and Future Phases

All planted trees must be logged in the National Tree Growing and Restoration Platform; failure to submit evidence after the 30‑day window triggers a re‑planting order from county environment officers. Quarterly progress reports are slated for the National Treasury, ensuring budgetary alignment with the 2025‑2026 long‑rains planting window that targets an additional 1.2 billion trees.

International partners such as the Food and Agriculture Organization and the World Bank are providing technical expertise, though the entire financial outlay remains domestically funded, supplemented by corporate social‑responsibility contributions from roughly 300 private companies.

What Experts Say

Dr. Samuel Njoroge, a climate‑policy analyst at the University of Nairobi, called the Mazingira Day initiative "an astute blend of symbolic nation‑building and pragmatic climate action." He warned, however, that "success hinges on post‑planting care; without sustained community engagement, seedling mortality could erode hard‑won gains."

Meanwhile, nutritionist Dr. Grace Wanjiku highlighted that "fruit‑tree agroforestry not only sequesters carbon but also diversifies diets, especially in rural counties where malnutrition rates remain above 30 %."

Key Facts

• Event: Mazingira Day tree‑planting on 10 Oct 2025
• Target: 100 million fruit‑tree seedlings across 28 000 primary schools
• Budget: KSh 2.3 billion for seedling production (2024‑2025)
• Survival goal: 80 % monitored by Kenya Forest Service
• Long‑term aim: 15 billion trees by 2032, 30 % cover