Republic of Kenya
Final Country Report of the Land Degradation Neutrality Target
Setting Programme
January 2018
Theme: ‘Towards concerted national efforts to halt and reverse land degradation, restore
degraded ecosystems and sustainably manage land resources’
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This document has been prepared with the support of the Land Degradation Neutrality Target Setting Programme (LDN TSP), a partnership initiative implemented by the Secretariat and the Global Mechanism of the UNCCD, with support of the following partners: France, Germany, Luxembourg, Republic of Korea, Spain, Trinidad and Tobago, Turkey, European Space Agency, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, Global Environment Facility, ISRIC – World Soil Information, International Union for Conservation of Nature, Joint Research Centre of the European Commission, Soil Leadership Academy, United Nations Development Programme, United Nations Environment Programme, World Resources Institute. The views and content expressed in this document are solely those of the authors of this document and do not necessarily represent the views of the LDN TSP or any of its partners.
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Table of Contents
Acronym .............................................................................................................................................. 4
Acknowledgement ............................................................................................................................... 5
Summary ................................................................................................................................................. 6
1. Leveraging LDN .............................................................................................................................. 9
2. Assessing LDN .............................................................................................................................. 13
LDN Trends and Drivers ................................................................................................................... 13
LDN legal and institutional environment .......................................................................................... 17
3. Setting LDN Targets ..................................................................................................................... 20
4. Achieving LDN ............................................................................................................................. 25
5. Conclusion: .................................................................................................................................... 28
6. Annexes ......................................................................................................................................... 31
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Acronym
LDN TSP Land Degradation Neutrality Target Setting Programme
COP Conference of Parties
UNCCD United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification
SDG Sustainable Development Goals
SLM Sustainable Land Managment
MTP Medium Term Plan
CIDP County Integrated Development Plan
ASAL Arid and Semi-Arid Lands
NCCAP National Climate Change Action Plan
REDD Reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation
AFR100 Africa Forest Landscape Restoration Initiaitve
FLR Forest Landscape Restoration
NEMA National Environmental Management Authority
KAPSLM Kenya Agricultural Productivity and Sustainable Land Managment
UNEP United Nations Environment Program
SOC Soil Organic Carbon
ESA CCI-LC European Space Agency Climate Change Initiative Land Cover
NDVI Normalized Difference Vegetation Index
EMCA Environmental Management Coordiantion Act
NEAP National Environmental Action Plan
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Acknowledgement
We take this opportunity to thank everyone who contributed towards the success of the LDN
Targets Endorsement Process, Kenya. We are especially grateful to the Government of
Kenya, through its various ministries who have shown commitment to the LDN programme
and led the various activities towards LDN Target Setting.
We wish to appreciate the administrative, technical and financial support received from
UNCCD through the Global Mechanism and UNDP, Global Policy Centre on Resilient
Ecosystems and Desertification (GC-RED). The support was very instrumental towards the
success of the process and generally the LDN programme in Kenya. We also appreciate the
global support received from IUCN and GEF towards this process.
The Ministry of Environment, Kenya through the Multilateral Environmental Agreements
Department being the coordinator of the LDN TSP Kenya is highly appreciated for working
tirelessly towards the success of LDN TSP Kenya.
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Summary
The twelfth session of the Conference of Parties (COP) of the United Nations Convention to
Combat Desertification (UNCCD), held in Ankara, Turkey in October 2015, endorsed SDG
target 15.3 and the concept of land degradation neutrality (LDN) as a strong vehicle for
driving the implementation of the Convention. It invited all UNCCD country Parties to
formulate voluntary targets to achieve LDN and requested UNCCD bodies to provide
“guidance for formulating national LDN targets and initiatives” and to facilitate “the use of
the UNCCD indicator framework as a contribution to the monitoring, evaluation and
communication of progress towards the national LDN targets”. Kenya being a signatory to
UNCCD and realising the importance of sustainable development embarked on the process of
formulating national LDN Targets to address land use management challenges.
As an aspirational target, LDN aims to sustain the productivity of land resources, support
ecosystem functions and services, and thus meet the needs of current and future generations.
In terms of neutrality, the LDN concept aims to achieve a balance between anticipated new
land degradation and future efforts to improve degrade land (e.g. through land restoration, and
SLM).
Sustainable Development Goals in Kenya have been adopted and each government sector has
been tasked to incorporate these goals in their development plans as a guiding policy. County
Governments are also mandated to institutionalize the SDG agenda in their development plans
so as to address environment and development issues. In 2015, Kenya was already in the 8th
year of implementing its long term Economic blueprint, the Kenya Vision 2030, which is
being implemented in 5-year rolling Medium Term Plans (MTP). By the time the SDGs were
adopted, the second MTP (2013-2017) was in its third year of implementation. The process of
the preparation of the third MTP (2018- 2022) and the second generation County Integrated
Development Plans (CIDPs) is complete in which SDGs and Africa Agenda 2063 will be
mainstreamed. This process provide an enabling environment for integration of LDN concept
into development agenda in Kenya.
In Kenya, land degradation manifests itself in many ways, including: unsustainable loss of
vegetation and landscape functions; increasing incidences of aridity; increasing scarcity of
water sources; shrubs in areas which were predominantly rich in pastures;gullies, thin and
stony soils and invasion of intrusive species that lead to food and water insecurity. These
components do not act separately, but are intrinsically linked to each other and may act as
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mutual supporters and accelerators of the degradation process. As degradation continues, it
becomes increasingly difficult and costly to rehabilitate and restore affected lands to original
state. LDN programme identified three indicators for assessing the land degrdation baseline
which include: Land Use Land Cover; Land Productivity; Carbon stocks above and below
ground (metric: Soil Organic Carbon). Key drivers of land degradation in Kenya include:
Deforestation; Overgrazing; Poor agricultural activities ( overuse of fertilizers, up-down hill
ploughing); Forest fires; Poor spatial planning; Mining and Sand harvesting. Based on the
land cover change map, Forst landuse is most affected, as its converted to cropland and
shrubland. This is predominant in nyanza, western and parts of rift valley. Declining land
productivity is severe in southern eastern and coastal parts of Kenya.Poor soil organic carbon
is predominant in arid and semi arid lands of Kenya. These challenges have threatened food
security inKenya and adversely affected livelihoods.
National policies exist in Kenya that safeguard the integrity of the environment. The policies
are formulated by various government ministries and departments such as environment,
agriculture, water, energy etc. LDN is entrenched in cross cutting policies related to land
management and restoration. The goal of these policies is to promote sustainable development
while at the same time manage natural resources sustainably. In order to achieve LDN, the
LDN response hierarchy (Avoid > Reduce > Reverse) will need to be streamlined in relevant
national policies and commitments. Governmental commitment to apply the LDN response
hierarchy in order to reach the national LDN targets has been expressed by the
“Governmental High Level Note”, which was endorsed by the Minister for Environment
Kenya.
Through the LDN target(s), Kenya aims to achieve a balance between anticipated land
degradation (losses) and planned positive actions (gains), in order to achieve, at least, a
position of no net loss of healthy and productive land.
In Kenya LDN targets have been set at national scale with ambition to reach LDN for the
entire country taking into account all LDN indicators (Land use land cover, land productivity
and soil organic carbon). LDN Targets have also been set at subnational level. Watershed
(Hydro-basins and sub-basins) boundaries have been used to delineate and prioritize hotspots
of land degradation. Subnational LDN targets have been set for achieving a neutral (no net
loss) or improved (net gain) state allowing Kenya to focus on areas that have been identified
as degradation “hot spots” and/or are considered to be a high-value priority in achieving LDN.
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Based on the three Indicators (Land use land cover, land productivity and soil organic
carbon), the main priority hotspots are EwasoNyiro (Lak Dera2) and Tana River basins.
Specific targets to avoid minimize and reverse land degradation have also been defined with
reference to specific land cover classes. Degradation drivers and processes are usually linked
to certain land cover classes and can be addressed by setting targets that are explicit in this
regard. Targets in this category have taken many different forms with varying degrees of
comprehensiveness and ambition.
LDN Targets of KENYA
LDN at the national scale
- LDN is achieved by 2030 as compared to 2015 and an additional 9% of the national territory
has improved (net gain)
LDN at the sub-national scale
- LDN is achieved in EwasoNgiro North (Lak Dera 2) of Kenya by 2030 as compared to
2015 (no net loss)
- LDN is achieved in the Tana River catchment zone of Kenya by 2030 as compared to
2015 and an additional 16.7% of the zone has improved (net gain)
- LDN is achieved in Athi River catchment zone (Galana, Pangani, Kenya South east
Coast) of Kenya by 2030 as compared to 2015 (no net loss)
- LDN is achieved in Rift Valley catchment zone (Lake Turkana, Naivasha, Natron) of
Kenya by 2030 as compared to 2015 and an additional of 9% of the zone has
improved (net gain)
- LDN is achieved in the Lake Victoria region (Nile basin) of Kenya by 2030 as
compared to 2015 and an additional 9 % of the zone has improved (net gain)
Specific targets to avoid, minimize and reverse land degradation
Increase forest cover through Afforestation/Agroforestry in existing forests; areas of
shrubs/grassland; wetlands; croplands by 5.1 M Ha
Increase by 16% net land productivity in forest, shrubland/grassland and cropland
showing declining productivity; achieved through SLM practices
Increase soil organic carbon by 319626 total tonnes in cropland land use achieved
through SLM practices
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Halt the conversion of forests to other land cover classes by 2030
Rehabilitation of all abandoned Mining and quarrying areas through enforcement of
by- laws
1. Leveraging LDN
The Government of Kenya is committed towards environmental conservation efforts which
promote sustainable development in the country. The LDN programme supported the
government and other key stakeholders in this endeavour to address critical land management
issues thereby providing opportunity for sustainable land management practices. The
Government is committed to promoting interventions on sustainable development in line with
various global and regional frameworks. Following the decisions taken at during UNCCD 12th
COP, Ankara, Turkey (October 2015), Kenya, among other countries, made a commitment to
participate in the LDN programme. In June 2016, the LDN Target Setting Programme (TSP)
began in Kenya, with the Government of Kenya setting out the roadmap of its implementation
and achievement. At the highest level the Minister for Environment, endorsed LDN Targets in
August 2017, showing commitment and stewardship to the process.
The Land Degradation concept has been addressed through various environmental initiatives
spearheaded by government, development partners, NGOs and research institutions. Though
implemented in a fragmented manner, land degradation assessment has been conducted in
several parts of the country and Hotspots have been identified. This provides an entry point
for land degradation neutrality in Kenya which comes in to stop, reduce and avoid further
degradation. Sustainable land management practices have been initiated in certain parts of the
country to control land degradation, but the trend is still worsening especially in ASALS.
LDN provides an opportunity to comprehensively assess land degradation in the country and
engage key stakeholders who can drive the process of land
gradation/rehabilitation/reclamation forward. Kenya has shown interest in setting up LDN
Targets and also putting up mechanisms for achievement of LDN. Existing policies on
environment, agriculture and land reclamation support LDN efforts to end further
degradation. Ongoing goverment intitiatives have also been sensitised on LDN and synergies
have been formed to integrate these efforts.
LDN comes at an opportune time when SDGs are being incorporated into development plans
of the country. Ministry of Devolution and Planning is coordinating domestication of SDGs in
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the Country. The SDGs have been integrated in National and County Government
Development Plans to drive the process of socio economic development. During the official
launch of the SDGs in Kenya (Sept. 2016) the County Development Planners exuded
confidence that the Counties have an opportunity to improve the lives of the people of Kenya
and the 17 SDGs provide a great platform to evaluate progress and work on the existing gaps
to ensure that no one is left behind. They noted that priorities will vary from County to
County depending on their development priorities and challenges. They also called for more
Advocacy and sensitization of communities on the global goals saying they need to be
understood at the grass root level to ensure that they are embraced.
Land Degradation Neutrality is actually the cornerstone of achieving most Sustainable
Development Goals in Kenya. This is because land is the main resource upon which most
economic resources abide in Kenya. Through restoration of degraded land, agriculture
productivity will increase, food security will be enhanced and other economic activities will
thrive.
At the County government level, SDGs have been aligned with the County Integrated
Development Plans. This has already begun with training of country government officers in
charge of planning and budgeting. The plan also has classified the SDGs into short, medium
and long-term in order of prioritizing pressing areas anchored on People, environment, and
development.
Kenya has embarked on a Green Economy initiative, spearheaded by the Ministry of the
Environment, which has aligned its activities well with SDGs. Green Economy refers to a
shift towards a development path that promotes resource efficiency and sustainable
management of natural resources, social inclusion, resilience, and sustainable infrastructure
development. LDN is therefore a catalyst to Green Economy as it promotes restoration of
degraded lands and other sustainable land management practices. Kenya‟s key policies and
programs supportive of a green economy include investments in renewable energy, promotion
of resource -efficient and cleaner production, enhanced resilience to economic and climatic
shocks, pollution control and waste management, environmental planning and governance,
and restoration of forest ecosystems.
LDN concept is supported in the Kenyan constitution and economic blueprint Vision 2030
that requires the country to work towards achieving a forest cover of at least 10% of the land
area to ensure sustainable resource use, growth and employment creation. However, due to
population pressure in high potential areas, realizing these targets requires mobilizing
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communities and the private sector to invest in commercial forestry, expansion of forestry
development to arid and semi-arid areas, investment in industry for enhanced processing
efficiency and value addition, strengthening of forest governance policies and institutions, and
greater consideration of forestry in development programmes such as in agriculture, energy,
tourism, and water programmes. Of importance is expansion of forestry into Arid and Semi-
arid lands in a bid to restore degraded lands.
In the National Forest policy 2015, the Government commits to support the rehabilitation of
degraded dryland forests and encourages tree planting in the arid and semi-arid lands; it hopes
to reserve and/or acquire land for forestry. This policy is very consistent with what LDN
target setting process hopes to achieve.
The Vision 2030 has identified agriculture as one of the key sectors to deliver the 10 percent
annual economic growth rate envisaged under the economic pillar. The challenge that hasn‟t
been fully addressed is that land remains under-exploited for agricultural production both in
the high and medium potential areas as well as in the Arid and Semi-Arid Lands (ASAL).
According to National Environmental Policy of 2013, the Government has purposed to
implement national soil conservation mechanisms and enhance protection of wetlands,
riverbanks, hilltops and slopes from unsustainable practices to prevent soil erosion and
environmental degradation. This gives LDN an entry point to build on ongoing initiatives
geared towards soil rehabilitation.
Kenya launched its National Climate Change Action Plan (NCCAP) on Wednesday, 27th
March 2013. The plan addresses the options for a low-carbon climate resilient development
pathway as Kenya adapts to climate impacts and mitigates growing emissions. The NCCAP
provides full details of a range of adaptation and mitigation actions in the context of a low
carbon climate resilient development pathway. Of great importance to LDN TSP is the
priority action of restoration of forests and degraded land. Also climate smart agriculture and
agroforestry are also areas prioritised for low carbon climate. These are sustainable land
management practices that are anchored well within LDN Concept.
Actions to improve climate resilience in the environment sector will uphold Kenya‟s goals to
preserve the country‟s rich ecosystems and align well with land degradation neutrality targets.
Forest-based actions are recognised to hold the highest potential for acting on climate change
because of the combined adaptation, mitigation and sustainable development co-benefits.
Actions that can be implemented under LDN include:
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Increasing tree cover to 10 per cent of total land area: helps slow the rapid loss of
rainwater runoff thereby helping to prevent flooding and landslides, reduced erosion
and sediment discharge into rivers and improved water availability.
Reforesting and rehabilitating the main water towers and water catchment areas: A
priority for Kenya due to the livelihood and biodiversity improvements.
Restoration of forests on degraded lands has a mitigation potential of over 30 MtCO2e
a year in 2030, the largest potential identified in the low carbon analysis.
Other climate change actions include reforestation and reducing emissions from
deforestation and forest degradation (REDD), with mitigation potentials of 6.1 and 1.6
MtCO2e.
Under the Afr100 Initiative (a Pan-African country led effort to bring 100 million hectares of
deforested and degraded landscapes under restoration by 2030 and the Bonn Challenge)
Kenya has committed to restoration of 5.1 million Ha of land. This goes towards the
restoration target of 100 Million Ha of deforested and degraded land by 2030. Government of
Kenya through the Ministry of Environment, Natural Resources and Regional Development
Authorities has made a commitment to restoring 5.1 million hectares of forests in the country.
The move has also been triggered by the ongoing Forest Landscape Restoration (FLR) project
which informs work on a number of international commitments including the New York
Declaration, the African Forest Landscape. The constitutional mandate of Kenya is to
maintain at least 10% of national forest cover; Kenya`s vision 2030 flagship projects include:
rehabilitating and protecting Kenya`s water towers in order to increase, regulate and maintain
high quality water flowing from this catchments.
In August 2016, Kenya LDN Working Group was established with the main role of providing
advisory and technical support to the LDN process implementation. Participants were drawn
from key government ministries/departments/agencies; civil societies; research institutions;
universities; private sector and development partners. The Working group played a vital role
in achievement of the LDN milestones: land degradation trends analysis and baseline data
assessment; LDN Target identification and validation and leverage opportunities for LDN
based on ongoing initiatives. The Working group was particularly instrumental in setting
realistic LDN targets based on their experience in land degradation trends in Kenya.
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2. Assessing LDN
LDN Trends and Drivers
Land degradation remains a major threat to Kenya‟s ability to meet the growing
demand for food and other environmental services. Desertification is intensifying and
spreading in Kenya, threatening millions of inhabitants and severely reducing productivity of
the land. The drought situation has accelerated soil degradation and reduced per-capita food
production. According to the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), much of the
problem is due to a growing imbalance between population, resources, development and
environment. 80% of the country is classified as ASALs and varies from County to County.
Rapid population growth is exacerbating the existing problems of imbalance between human
numbers and available arable land, deforestation, poor land use systems and inappropriate
farming methods. All these are among the major problems leading to food crises and
desertification in Kenya. Mechanisms that initiate land degradation in Kenya include:
physical processes such as decline in soil structure leading to soil compaction, erosion and
desertification; chemical processes such as acidification, leaching, salinization and fertility
depletion; and biological processes such as reduction in total biomass carbon, and decline in
land biodiversity. Causes of land degradation are the agents that determine the rate of
degradation and include biophysical (land use and land management, including deforestation
and tillage methods), socio-economic (e.g., land tenure, marketing, institutional support,
income and human health), and political (e.g. incentives, political stability). Climate change
is also emerging as a major underlying cause of land degradation. The vision of Land
Degradation Neutrality is to sustain the natural capital of the land and associated land-based
ecosystem services.
LDN baseline is the initial numerical value of the recommended three indicators used as
proxies of the land-based natural capital:
o land cover;
o land productivity (metric: net primary productivity);
o Carbon stocks above and below ground (metric: soil organic carbon
(SOC) stock).
These indicators correspond to the UNCCD progress indicators and have been recommended
as sub-indicators for the indicator 15.3.1, “Proportion of land that is degraded over total land
area”, adopted to measure progress toward the SDG target 15.3.
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All three indicators are complementary to each other but not necessarily additive. If one of the
indicators shows a negative change, degradation is considered to occur, even if the others are
positive. Degradation is generally considered to occur when:
o land productivity shows a significant negative trend; or
o SOC shows a significant negative trend; or
o negative land cover change occurs; or
o A negative change occurs in another nationally relevant indicator.
Data interpretation meetings with the LDN Working Group
Land Cover Maps (2000, 2010) and Land Cover Change Map
In order to obtain an indication of the land use/cover baseline for LDN target setting, the
ESA CCI-LC 2000 and 2010 epoch is used and the 22 original classes are aggregated into 6
main land cover categories. These categories are selected because they are implementable,
complete (in that all land areas in a country may be classified by these categories without
duplication) and aligned with the 6 land use categories recommended by IPCC for the purpose
of estimating the level of total carbon content for the global estimates of land-based GHG
sinks and sources (IPCC, 2006). To obtain estimates of land cover change, the ESA CCI-LC
2000 and 2010 epochs are used, focusing on changes between the 6 main land cover
categories only.
Based on the land cover data provided by ESA CCI, 55% of the total land cover area in Kenya
is dominated by shrubs, grassland and sparsely vegetated areas, cropland stands at 31% while
forest land is at 7%.The remaining 7% is occupied by wetlands, artificial areas and bareland.
The land cover data under review was 2000 and 2010. Change detection between the two
epochs showed that 18100 ha of forest class was converted to cropland and another 4400 ha
of forest class converted to shrubs/grassland/sparsely vegetated lands. This is attributed to the
issues discussed below.
The Arid and Semi-Arid Lands (ASALs) of Kenya are mainly dominated by Shrubs,
grasslands and sparsely vegetated areas as the maps suggest. However these areas have in
recent times experienced conversion and modification of land cover driven by growing
demands of human population. The Arid lands of Kenya are mainly inhabited by Pastoralists
and agro pastoralists. These regions are mainly suitable for nomadic livestock production.
This explains why there isn‟t rapid change in land cover class 2 (Shrubs, grasslands and
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sparsely vegetated). The main change witnessed in the land cover change map is driven by
deforestation: from forest to cropland or shrubs. This is prevalent in the humid and sub-humid
parts of Kenya whose livelihood system is mainly agriculture (crop farming) and the region
has higher population relative to the ASALs.
Land Productivity Dynamics
The Land Productivity Dynamics (LPD) dataset provided by the Joint Research Centre oft he
European Commission represents Net Primary productivity measured in tonnes of dry matter
per hectare per year. It is derived from a 15 year time series of 1999-2013 SPOT VGT NDVI
observations composited in 10-day intervals at a spatial resolution of 1 km. The 5 classes are
aqualitative combined measure of the intensity and persistence of negative or positive trends
and changes of the photo-synthetically active vegetation cover over the observed period.
While not an absolute measure of land productivity it depicts trajectories of long-term
seasonal dynamics and departures from it that are typically related to overall land productivity
change.
This product shows that 16.7% of total land area in Kenya has declining and early signs of
decline in productivity. Declining productivity is noted in Eastern parts of Kenya moving
towards the coastal region; again this falls in the ASAL regions and from the land cover maps
the area is dominated by shrubs. These regions also experience rapid land conversion as
population is pushed to marginal ecosystems. Areas of cropland also seem to show early signs
of decline in productivity, this is driven by modification in land cover.
Soil Organic Carbon
This indicator shows overall soil quality associated with nutrient cycling and water holding
capacity. In order to obtain an indication of default baseline SOC stocks, ISRIC‟s
SoilGrids250m (Hengl et al., 2016) products of SOC percentage, bulk density, gravel fraction
and depth to bedrock were used to calculate a predicted SOC stock for 0 – 30 cm (i.e. topsoil).
Soil organic carbon and land use/cover data analysed between 2000 and 2010 shows that there
has been a decrease in SOC in areas that were initially forested but now under cropland. As a
result, 319626 tonnes of SOC have been lost.
Results show that 80% of Kenyan Soils having low Organic Carbon. This is true with
reference to the Ecological Zones of Kenya whereby the region represented is ASALs. In this
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zone, the soils are shallow, highly variable, and of light to medium texture. The soils are also
of low fertility and are subject to compaction, capping and erosion. A few areas have volcanic
soils and alluvial deposits which are suitable for crop production. Heavy clays are found in
these areas also, but cultivation is difficult on them due to their poor workability as well as
salinity problems.
A summary of the LDN baseline based on the three LDN indicators is shown in annex 3.
Potential drivers of land degradation in Kenya
Table 1. Main direct and indirect drivers of land degradation.
Direct drivers of land degradation Indirect drivers of land degradation
Improper management of the soil
Improper management of annual,
perennial, scrub and tree crops
Deforestation and removal of natural
vegetation
Over-exploitation of vegetation for
domestic use
Overgrazing
Industrial activities, waste deposition and
mining
Urbanisation and infrastructure
development
Discharges
Release of airborne pollutants
Disturbance of the water cycle
Over-abstraction of water
Natural causes
Population pressure
Land tenure
Poverty/wealth
Labour availability
Inputs (including access to
credit/financing) and infrastructure
Education, access to knowledge and
support services
War and conflict
Governance, institutional settings and
policies (including taxes, subsidies,
incentives)
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LDN legal and institutional environment
Environment management and planning in Kenya can be traced to the Rio Earth Summit of
1992, which helped a great deal in raising the understanding of the link between environment
and development. Following the Summit, Kenya initiated the National Environment Action
Plan (NEAP) process. This was completed in 1994. It recommended the need for a national
policy and law on the environment. The policy making process culminated into the Sessional
Paper No. 6 of 1999 entitled Environment and Development. The legislative process gave
forth the Environmental Management and Coordination Act (EMCA) No. 8 of 1999 as
Kenya‟s first framework environmental law. Both the Sessional Paper and the Act added to a
large number of existing sectoral laws and policies on various facets of the environment such
as water, forest and minerals. This has created a diffuse system of environmental laws and
policies, some of whose provisions are not in harmony making them ill-suited to aid the
pursuit of sustainable development objectives as set out in the Vision 2030.
The promulgation of The Constitution of Kenya 2010 and other new developments like
climate change marked an important chapter in Kenya‟s environmental policy development.
Hailed as a „Green‟ Constitution, it embodies elaborate provisions with considerable
implications for sustainable development. Chapter V is entirely dedicated to land and
environment. It also embodies a host of social and economic rights which are of
environmental character such as the right to water, food and shelter, among others.
The process of formulating national environmental policy was initiated in 2006 by Ministry of
Environment and Mineral Resources. This culminated in the production of the Draft National
Environment Policy, 2008 which was reviewed after promulgation of the Constitution in 2010
and Kenya now has the recent 2014 National Environmental Policy.
The objectives of the National environmental policy include:
Provision of a framework for an integrated approach to planning and sustainable
management of Kenya‟s environment and natural resources.
Strengthen the legal and institutional framework for good governance, effective
coordination and management of the environment and natural resources.
Land degradation neutrality being a cross cutting theme, has several policy guidelines in the
National Environment policy showing commitment of Government of Kenya in management
of ecosystems and sustainable use of natural resources.
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Laws governing environmental law in Kenya
The constitution
Article 42 of constitution states that, “Every person has the right to a clean and healthy
environment”, which includes the right:
To have the environment protected for the benefit of present and future generations
through legislative and other measures, particularly those contemplated in Article 69;
and
To have obligations relating to the environment fulfilled under Article 70.
Article 70(1) guarantees clean environment as a claimable right by any member who feels that
his rights to a clean environment has been infringed. This article provides that, “If a person
alleges that a right to a clean and healthy environment recognized and protected under Article
42 has been/is been or is likely to be, denied, violated, infringed or threatened, the person may
apply to a court for redress in addition to any other legal remedies that are available in respect
to the same matter.
Environmental Management and Coordination Act, 1999 (EMCA)
The Environmental Management and Coordination Act (EMCA), 1999, is the framework law
on environmental management and conservation. EMCA establishes among others the
following institutions; National Environment Management Authority, Public Complaints
Committee, National Environment Tribunal, National Environment Action Plan Committees,
and County Environment Committees. The National Environment Management Authority
(NEMA) was established as the principal instrument of government charged with the
implementation of all policies relating to the environment, and to exercise general supervision
and coordination over all matters relating to the environment. In consultation with the lead
agencies, NEMA is empowered to develop regulations, prescribe measures and standards and,
issue guidelines for the management and conservation of natural resources and the
environment. The Act provides for environmental protection through;
Environmental impact assessment
Environmental audit and monitoring
Environmental restoration orders, conservation orders, and easements.
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National Environment Management Authority (NEMA) is the national regulatory agency
coordinating with the decentralised entities. There are various committees on standards
enforcement and action plans to support NEMA‟s performance in matters of environment
quality standards and planning. The multi-sectoral National Environment Council (NEC) is
the apex national environment policy making organ while the Directorate of Environment in
the Ministry plays an oversight role in policy formulation as well as monitoring the
implementation in relation to other sectorial policies.
LDN is being coordinated by Ministry of Environment, Department of Multilateral
Environmental Agreements (MEA). A working group comprising of other relevant
stakeholders was formulated to steer the process. Key ministries from the working group such
as Agriculture, Water, Energy and Finance played a vital advisory role in leveraging LDN.
The Ministry of Environment, which is charged with the mandate of protecting and managing
the environment for socio-economic development, has been at the forefront in prioritizing
LDN and ensuring it‟s integrated in relevant sector s and programmes. To address LDN
related issues in totality, MEA department receives technical and administrative support from
significant sectors such as Climate Change, Forest Conservation, and Wildlife Conservation.
These interlinkages were instrumental in LDN implementation.
SWOT analysis on the linkage between the legal and institutional environment in Kenya
and the country’s commitment to achieve LDN
One major strength that provides an enabling environment for LDN is the land and
environment chapter provided for in the constitution of Kenya. It calls for conservation of
natural resources especially maintaining 10% forest cover. Other policies in natural resources
management like the land reclamation policy seek to safeguard land based capital. EMCA
2015 provides a framework law on environmental management and conservation in Kenya.
NEMA established under EMCA is charged with issuing guidelines for the management and
conservation of natural resources. Department of MEA under Ministry of Environment is
represented in environmental committees that influence policy review and implementation;
this provides an avenue to link LDN to other related initiatives.
Some key opportunities to leverage LDN include: Ongoing initiatives related to forest
restoration (Afr100); Green Economy; Climate Change resilience and Adaptations. These
initiatives are being implemented by various government sectors to create resilient
environment and promote sustainable development. Awareness was created on LDN to create
understanding on the linkages.
20
Some notable weaknesses in linking LDN to legal and institutional environment in Kenya
include the fact that policy making/review process in Kenya is slow mainly because of the
level of stakeholder engagement. Also Kenya has conflicting or overlapping sectoral policies
related to LDN and environmental rehabilitation efforts; various environmental policies
addressing the same challenge are yet to be harmonized comprehensively.
Another institutional challenge is lack of prioritization of environmental matters especially
land degradation and sustainable land management in County development plans and other
devolution efforts. A major threat that may pose a challenge to sustainable LDN efforts is
political interference in decisions that do not favor conservation efforts like eviction and
resettlement of people on forest ecosystems.
3. Setting LDN Targets
Establishment of LDN Target(s) is foremost a political process that utilizes the best available
knowledge, including the LDN baseline, to set ambitious and aspirational yet realistic targets.
It means defining broad, yet clear, time-bound and measurable objectives on what a country
wants to achieve in terms of halting and reversing land degradation and restoring degraded
lands through a wide range of possible measures. In Kenya, LDN Targets are essential in
achievement of sustainable development. LDN provides an opportunity for realization of
Vision 2030, Medium Term Plan (MTP) three and Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 15.
The Government of Kenya is committed to land management activities geared towards
achievement of these goals.
Through the LDN target(s), Kenya aims to achieve a balance between anticipated land
degradation (losses) and planned positive actions (gains), in order to achieve, at least, a
position of no net loss of healthy and productive land. In Kenya, the impacts of land
degradation are severe: they include a reduction in crop and pasture productivity and
fuelwood and non-timber forest products, which are closely linked to poverty and food
insecurity. The damage to soil, loss of habitat, water shortages, and siltation reduce
biodiversity and ecosystem services and have economic consequences. In order to address
these land degradation challenges, Kenya has gone a mile further to set more ambitious target
beyond Neutrality which is the minimum objective.
In Kenya LDN targets have been set at national scale with ambition to reach LDN for the
entire country taking into account all LDN indicators (Land use land cover, land productivity
and soil organic carbon). LDN Targets have also been set at subnational level. Watershed
(Hydro-basins and sub-basins) boundaries have been used to delineate and prioritize hotspots
21
of land degradation. Subnational LDN targets have been set for achieving a neutral (no net
loss) or improved (net gain) state allowing Kenya to focus on areas that have been identified
as degradation “hot spots” and/or are considered to be a high-value priority in achieving LDN.
Based on the three Indicators (Land use land cover, land productivity and soil organic
carbon), the main priority hotspots are Ewaso Nyiro (Lak Dera2) and Tana River basins.
Specific targets to avoid minimize and reverse land degradation have also been defined with
reference to specific land cover classes. Degradation drivers and processes are usually linked
to certain land cover classes and can be addressed by setting targets that are explicit in this
regard. Targets in this category have taken many different forms with varying degrees of
comprehensiveness and ambition.
LDN Targets
LDN at the national scale
- LDN is achieved by 2030 as compared to 2015 and an additional 9% of the national
territory has improved (net gain)
LDN at the sub-national scale
- LDN is achieved in EwasoNgiro North (Lak Dera 2) of Kenya by 2030 as compared
to 2015 (no net loss)
- LDN is achieved in the Tana River catchment zone of Kenya by 2030 as compared
to 2015 and an additional 16.7% of the zone has improved (net gain)
- LDN is achieved in Athi River catchment zone (Galana, Pangani, Kenya South east
Coast) of Kenya by 2030 as compared to 2015 (no net loss)
- LDN is achieved in Rift Valley catchment zone (Lake Turkana, Naivasha, Natron)
of Kenya by 2030 as compared to 2015 and an additional of 9% of the zone has
improved (net gain)
- LDN is achieved in the Lake Victoria region (Nile basin) of Kenya by 2030 as
compared to 2015 and an additional 9 % of the zone has improved (net gain)
Specific targets to avoid, minimize and reverse land degradation
Increase forest cover through Afforestation/Agroforestry in existing forests; areas of
shrubs/grassland; wetlands; croplands by 5.1 M Ha
Increase by 16% net land productivity in forest, shrubland/grassland and cropland
showing declining productivity; achieved through SLM practices
22
Increase soil organic carbon by 319626 total tonnes in cropland land use achieved
through SLM practices
Halt the conversion of forests to other land cover classes by 2030
Rehabilitation of all abandoned Mining and quarrying areas through enforcement of
by- laws
23
Table 2- Summary of corrective measures to achieve LDN
Negative Trend Area in ha Corrective measure Estimated
investment
required (M
USD)
Area in ha Timeframe
Conversion of Forest to Cropland 18100 Afforestation/Agro forestry 18100 2030 3
Conversion of Forest to Shrubs,
grasslands and sparsely vegetated
areas
4400 Afforestation 4400 2030 0.44
Low Forest Cover /tree cover 4099300 Afforestation 5100000 2030 409.93
Declining net land productivity in all
land cover categories (delete)
2369200 Rehabilitate through SLM 2369200 2030 100
Forest showing declining and early
signs of decline in productivity
615100 Appropriate SLM practices 615100 2030 61.51
24
Shrubs, grasslands and sparsely
vegetated areas showing declining and
early signs of decline in productivity
4815200 Appropriate SLM practices 4185200 2030 481.52
Croplands showing declining and early
signs of decline in productivity
4251800 Agroforestry
Appropriate SLM practices
4251800 2030 425.18
Bush Enchroach
ment_Shrubs, grasslands and sparsely
vegetated areas showing increasing
productivity
4210600 Appropriate SLM practices 4210600 2030 421.06
Low Soil Organic Carbon in Cropland 55.9 (ton/ha) Appropriate SLM practices 59.5 (ton/ha) 2030 100
4. Achieving LDN
Governmental commitment to apply the LDN response hierarchy in order to reach the national
LDN targets has been expressed by the “Governmental High Level Note”, which was endorsed
by the Minister for Environment Kenya in August 2017.
Some entry points identified for achieving LDN include the engagement of National and County
Government to establish linkages between LDN and National Development Priority agenda like
Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) which were aligned to Integrated County Development
Plans. LDN programme implementation was used as a platform for advocacy and sensitization of
communities on the global goals, especially target 15.3 so that the linkage may be understood
and embraced at high level and grassroot level. National and county level meetings were held for
this discussion.
26
Kenya has embarked on a Green Economy initiative, spearheaded by the Ministry of the
Environment. Green Economy refers to a shift towards a development path that promotes
resource efficiency and sustainable management of natural resources. LDN Working Group
identified transformative projects related to the green economy initiative and the department of
MEA made follow up arrangements to include Public-Private Partnership in realization of this.
LDN was identified as a catalyst to Green Economy as it promotes restoration of degraded lands
and other sustainable land management practices. It was planned that LDN would be integrated
into Kenya‟s key policies and programs supportive of a green economy including investments in
renewable energy, promotion of resource efficient and cleaner production, enhanced resilience to
economic and climatic shocks, pollution control and waste management, environmental planning
and governance, and restoration of forest ecosystems.
Kenya National Climate Change Action Plan (NCCAP) addresses the options for a low-carbon
climate resilient development pathway; The NCCAP provides full details of a range of
adaptation and mitigation actions in the context of a low carbon climate resilient. Of great
importance to LDN TSP is the priority action of restoration of forests and degraded land. The
department of MEA will make follow up arrangements towards integration of LDN concept into
existing forest restoration initiatives. Climate smart agriculture and agroforestry are also areas
prioritised for low carbon climate. These are sustainable land management practices that are
anchored well within LDN Concept.
Kenya has committed to restoration of 5.1 million Ha of land under Restoration Initiative
(AFR100). This goes towards the global restoration target of 100 Million Ha of deforested and
degraded land by 2030. The ongoing Forest Landscape Restoration initiative is a key area of
focus in landscape restoration: the government through Kenya Forest Service is coordinating a
multi-stakeholder project on “National Landscape Restoration Mapping” in collaboration with
the World Resource Institute, Clinton Climate Initiative and the Green Belt Movement. Kenya
Forest Service provided technical support to the LDN implementation especially identification of
land degradation hotspots for rehabilittion. LDN will continue to link with this intervention to
coordinate parallel efforts as the vision of sustainable land management is similar. Further LDN
seeks to collaborate with the National REDD+ team as well as the Landscape Restoration
Technical Working Group.
27
In identification of transformative projects, the LDN TSP managed to develop
suggestions/concepts for specific SLM actions/projects that will target Land Restoration or
further LD prevention in Hotspots with involvement of the Government/Private
sector/NGOs/Development Partners etc.. The plan is to present the concepts to potential private
and public funders.
LDN Transformatie projects and programme opportunities identified
o 1.9 M Ha Rangeland Restoration by 2030 (State Dept. of Livestock):
In line with AFR100, Kenya has committed to restore 5.1 Million ha of
deforested and degraded lands. Part of this land is located in rangeland
ecosystems which fall under the ASALs. State Department of Livestock,
under Ministry of Agriculture intends to restore 1.9 M ha of land found in
rangelands. This will build on other ongoing efforts initiated by Kenya
Forest Services, who are already restoring degraded forest ecosystems.
o Develop two multi-purpose water conservation structures along Nzoia and
Nyando rivers (Vision 2030):
The objective of this project is to harness water resources and improve
availability as well as quality countrywide. This will improve access to
safe water and increased water storage and harvesting capacity. So far
feasibility studies and detailed designs have been done, and also
Environmental Impact Assessment has been completed. The target is to
construct Nzoia and Nyando (Koru) dams. The implementing agency is
Ministry of Water.
o Water catchment management (Vision 2030):
The objective of this project is to harness water resources and improve
availability as well as quality countrywide. The benefits will improve
access to safe water and increase water storage and harvesting capacity.
The target is to construct 24 dams with storage capacity of two billion
cubic meters. Some of these dams have already been constructed. The area
of interest is ASALs of Kenya. The implementing agency is Ministry of
Environment and Ministry of Water.
o ASAL Development - Irrigation Projects (Vision 2030):
28
This project aims to increase the area of ASAL land under irrigation. It
will initially be implemented in the Tana and Athi River basins. The
implementing agency is Ministry of Agriculture. The main objective is to
increase arable land by 30% by increasing the area of ASAL land under
irrigation to between 600,000 and 1.2 million hectares. Key benefits will
be that lands will be irrigated and use of agricultural land will intensify.
Also higher crop yields will be achieved.
o Rehabilitation and Protection of Indigenous Forests in Five Water Towers
(Vision 2030)
This project entails full rehabilitation of the five water towers of: Mau
Escarpment; Mt. Kenya; Aberdare Ranges; Cherangany Hills and Mt.
Elgon. The benefit will not only increase forest cover, but also increased
volume of water from the catchment areas. Ministry of Environment and
natural resources is the main implementing agency. It is a countrywide
project.
5. Conclusion:
Land Degradation is a major threat to sustainable development in Kenya. With the growing
population and demand for expansion of land for agriculture and settlement, land based natural
capital is being over exploited. Unsustainable land use conversion is a major challenge mainly on
forest cover and other fragile ecosystems facing encroachment to meet the growing demand.
LDN TSP provides a good opportunity to address these challenges, by coming up with
intervention strategies geared towards no net loss and even net gain of land based natural capital.
Key stakeholders were engaged in the process, forming an active working group. They were
drawn from goverment ministries/departments/agencies; research institutions; civil society
organizations and private sector. The main role of the working group was to guide the process,
review milestone development and advice on best practices in driving LDN agenda in Kenya.
The working group was very instrumental in setting up the LDN targets and validating them
based on their background knowledge.
Baseline data was very critical in assessing trends in land degradation. Earth observation data
was provided for the three reference indicators (land use land cover, land productivity and soil
organic carbon). These datasets provided good scenario of the land degradation in Kenya. The
29
working group was able to validate and utilize these datasets to assess trends and causes of land
degrdation in Kenya. Most importantly, baseline datasets enabled identification of hotspots, as
areas severely affected by land degradation. Watershed data was critical in delienating hotspots,
as most degraded hydrobasins were selected. The hotspots identified will guide intervention
efforts during implementation of transformative projects.
Synergies were established between LDN TSP and key policy instruments in the country. Laws
and policies exist that create an enabling condition for LDN. The Constituion of Kenya and
EMCA are legal tools that support land managment efforts. Other policy documents in
environment, agriculture and water sector support the LDN agenda too. Through sensitization
and working with institutions involved in development initiatives like SDG process and Vision
2030, linkages were established with LDN. This was particulary useful since SDG process is
already ongoing in the country. LDN being entrenched in SDG process was viewed as a driver of
socio ecnomic growth and development.
LDN Targets were identifed and endorsed by the Minister for Environment. These targets are
aimed at addressing the main causes of land degradation, while achieving no net loss or net gain
in land degradation neutrality. National and subnational LDN targets in Kenya have been
established. Through the LDN target(s), Kenya aims to achieve a balance between anticipated
land degradation (losses) and planned positive actions (gains), in order to achieve, at least, a
position of no net loss of healthy and productive land.
Lessons
The success of LDN implementation is highly dependant on strong stakeholder engagement at
high level and grassroot. It was important to get the buy in of stakeholders to own and drive the
process. At the national level, this was achieved, but at the County governement level, a lot of
sensitization is necessary. This will facilitate Couny budget allocation to LDN related activites.
Better mechanisms need to be devised to attract the private sector into the LDN process. Most
companies were not fully convinced of their significant role in the LDN process. A lot of
awareness is needed in Kenya to enhance Public-Private partnership for development initiatives.
National data related to LDN indicators, though preffered, was not readiliy available. Global
datasets were used instead. National data harmonization and sharing standards and policies need
to be mainstreamed.
30
One of the main lessons drawn from the implementationof LDN project in Kenya was on limited
time and budget. These factors were very critical in reaching a wide audience especially all the
47 County Goverments in Kenya. This was a challenge, however strategic counteractive
measures were sought.
31
6. Annexes
Annex 1: List of LDN Working Group Members
Name Organization
Veronica Ndeyu Ministry of Agriculture Livestock and Fisheries
Yuki Monjo CADEP-SFM: JICA
Frank Msafiri SuSwatch
Hussein Wario FAO
Francis Inganga NEMA
Dan Marangu Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources
Virginia Mulewa Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources
Makena Mureithi Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources
Brian Muthoka Council of Governors
Francis Nyambariga Ministry of Water and Irrigation
Gerrit Gerdes GIZ
Zeinabu Khalif UNDP
Pauline Mbae Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources
John Ngugi KEFRI
Silas Mulehi DRSRS
Blaise Okinyi Ministry of Agriculture Livestock and Fisheries
Dickson Murira Ministry of Energy and Petroleum
Eva Wanjiku Kenya Red Cross Society
Richard Mwendandu Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources
Anne Juepner UNDP
Charles Lange NEMA
Teresia Gitaka Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources
Nahashon Mwangi Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources
Kennedy Ondimu Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources
Okori Samuel Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources
Eunice Wangui UNCCD
32
Annex 2: Working Group Meetings
Meeting Dates Objective Description
Planning
Meeting with
NFP
14th Sept
2016
LDN Workplan review Reviewed LDN activities to be
implemented
Planning
Meeting with
NFP
28th Sept
2016
LDN National Working
Group Network Formation
Identified relevant stakeholders to
support LDN Process
Planning
Meeting with
NFP
15th Nov
2016
LDN Workplan and Budget
review
Discussed Budget available for
the project alongside the
workplan
Planning
Meeting with
NFP
5th
January
2017
National Working Group
nomination and Inception
workshop planning
Discussed final list of Working
Group members and workshop
logistics
Inception
Workshop
22nd –
23rd Feb
2017
Introduce stakeholders to the
LDN programme and discuss
leverage opportunities
LDN Ground breaking ceremony
officiated by PS, Ministry of
Environment
Planning
Meeting with
NFP
16th
March
2017
Review LDN Progress with
NFP
Discussed local and global LDN
data availability and identified
technical working group members
LDN
Validation
Workshop
9th -10th
May 2017
Review LDN targets and
identify policy measure for
achievement of LDN
Discussed LDN Targets based on
land degradation trends and
drivers
LDN
Validation
Meeting
7th June
2017
LDN National Targets in
Kenya
Critically reviewed proposed
targets and polished them to
required standard
LDN Targets
Endorsement
Workshop
24th
August
2017
LDN Targets Endorsement
and Transformative projects
Engage stakeholders in final LDN
Targets and pave way for CS,
Ministry of Environment to
officially endorse Kenya LDN
Targets
33
34
Annex 3: LDN Baseline
Trends in Net Land Productivity Dynamics (NetLPD) according to Land Use/Cover Category from 2000 to 2010
Land Use/Cover Category Area
(2000)
Area
(2010)
Net
area
chang
e
(2000-
2010)
Net land productivity dynamics (NetLPD)** (sq km) Soil
organic
carbon
(2000)*
*
sq km* sq km sq km Declinin
g
Early
signs of
decline
Stable
but
stresse
d
Stable
not
stresse
d
Increasin
g
No
Data**
*
ton/ha
Forest 41218 40993 -225 1429 4722 7154 23999 3631 58 46.8
Shrubs, grasslands and sparsely
vegetated areas
319251 319295 44 10849 37303 38342 187399 42106 3251 91.4
Croplands 182438 182619 181 10844 31674 32129 67328 39746 718 55.9
Wetlands and water bodies 14626 14626 0 286 243 702 1514 530 11350 14.5
Artifical areas 726 726 0 97 112 83 270 138 26 61.9
Bare land and other areas 27338 27338 0 186 182 673 21162 617 4518 14.5
SOC average (ton/ha) 37.9
Percent of total land area 4.00% 12.70% 13.50
%
51.50
%
14.80% 3.40%
Total (sq km) 585597 585597 0 23692 74236 79084 301672 86768 19920
35
Changing Land Use/Cover Category Net land productivity dynamics (NetLPD) trend 2000-2010 (sq km)
Declining Early signs of
decline
Stable but
stressed
Stable not
stressed
Increasing Total^
Forest to Cropland 3 5 56 85 31 180
Forest to Shrubs, grasslands and sparsely
vegetated areas
2 2 17 19 4 44
Changing Land Use/Cover Category Net area
change (2000-
2010)
Soil organic carbon 0 - 30 cm (2000-2010)
sq km 2000 ton/ha 2010 ton/ha 2000 total
(ton)
2010 total
(ton)****
2000-
2010 loss
(ton)
Forest to Cropland 181 77.2 59.5 1396143 1076517 -319626
Forest to Shrubs, grasslands and sparsely
vegetated areas
44 91.4 91.4 404640 404640 0
Total 225 1800783 1481157 -319626
Percent loss total SOC stock (country) 0.55%
(*) sq. km. stands for square kilometer or km2. To convert sq km to hectares (ha)
x100.
(**) Values for NetLPD and SOC are only for areas where Land Use/Cover is unchanged from 2000-
2010.
36
(***) 'No Data' includes snow, ice, desert areas, water bodies
and missing pixels
(****) Change in SOC due to changing Land Use/Cover derived from IPCC Good Practice Guidance for LULUCF
(2006).
(^) Where LPD totals differ from the Net area change (2000-2010) in Table 3, the differences are due to LPD No Data values being
excluded from Table 2
37
Annex 4: Government adoption of LDN targets
38
39
Annex 5: List of LDN reports
LDN leverage plan
LDN Baseline
Land Degradation Trends and Drivers
LDN Legal-institutional environment
LDN included in selected national policies and commitments
LDN Targets
LDN Key policy-technical measures to achieve LDN
LDN Governmental high-level note of measures to achieve the national LDN targets
LDN transformative project opportunities identification
