State moves to implement court ruling on Mau Forest boundaries

The Kenyan government is now grappling with the consequences of past decisions that allowed families to settle in the Eastern Mau Forest in the 1990s, a move that has led to decades-long legal and environmental turmoil.

The fallout stems from a 2001 government decision to excise 35,301 hectares from the Mau Forest for settlement. Although intended to legitimise earlier occupations, the move has sparked enduring legal battles, mass evictions, and growing conservation concerns.

Most recently, a landmark court ruling delivered on September 30, 2024 upheld the legality of the 2001 excision, marking a turning point in the long-running dispute.

Following the judgment, the government has initiated the long-delayed process of redrawing and beaconing forest boundaries to formally demarcate land for six settlement schemes—Marioshoni, Nessuit, Sururu, Likia, Sigotik, and Teret—created after the 2001 decision.

The exercise, now underway and expected to last three weeks, is being spearheaded by a multi-agency team from the State Departments of Lands and Environment, the Ministry of Interior, Kenya Forest Service, and the Ministry of Water and Sanitation.

“We want to know the exact boundaries so that we can live in peace. We have always been on the lookout because the government keeps telling us we are encroaching on the forests,” said Milka Chepkoech, a resident of one of the affected schemes.

The Eastern Mau issue dates back to 1997, when thousands were granted title deeds in government-established settlement schemes. However, despite a 2001 Gazette Notice intended to formalise the settlements, the government later argued the process had not been legally completed, thereby casting doubt on the validity of the titles.

This reversal culminated in a 2019 Executive decision that ordered evictions from the Mau East Forest Complex, despite many residents holding what they believed were legitimate land documents. Those affected turned to the courts for redress.

In the September 2024 ruling, Environment and Land Court Judge Justice J.M. Mutungi declared that the 2001 Legal Notice No. 142, which delineated the boundaries of the excised forest land, remained valid and enforceable. He affirmed that residents had proved their rightful ownership and directed the government to physically demarcate and beacon the boundaries within 12 months.

“The residents’ land rights, left in jeopardy by an unlawful Executive action, must be restored,” the judge said, adding that the boundary redrawing must be done visibly on the ground.

While many settlers have welcomed the ruling, members of the Ogiek community have raised concerns, citing a ruling from the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights in their favour that remains unimplemented.

“We have a court decision that has not been honoured, and now we don’t even know where the new boundaries leave us,” said Filax Sembui, an Ogiek representative.

Nessuit MCA Samuel Tonui, a petitioner in the case, said the 2001 map would help identify those who were settled legally, allowing them to develop their land and access credit facilities long denied due to unresolved tenure.

“People living here can now develop their parcels of land, which have been under caveat for the longest time,” he said.

But the ruling also came with caution. Njoro Deputy County Commissioner Mokin Ptangwany warned that those found to be living within forested areas after the beaconing exercise would be forcibly removed.

“The courts directed that those within forest boundaries be moved out. By the time this exercise concludes, any illegal residents will be evicted,” he said.