Mau forests evictees at one of the Internally displaced persons (IDP) camps in 2022 after being displaced during successive government-led eviction exercises.
The government has moved closer to resettling thousands of families evicted from the Mau Forest Complex and other landless households in the South Rift after acquiring vast tracts of land in Narok County.
In what officials describe as the clearest indication yet that the long-running dispute is nearing resolution, the government says the resettlement programme for more than 21,000 families displaced during successive evictions over the past two decades is in its final stages.
The announcement comes ahead of President William Ruto’s planned tour of the South Rift next month, where the issue is expected to dominate political discussions.
For years, the affected communities have accused successive governments of making promises that were never fulfilled. Many now say they feel abandoned despite overwhelmingly supporting President Ruto in the 2022 General Election, with some warning they could vote against the Kenya Kwanza administration in 2027 if the matter remains unresolved.
Interior Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen confirmed at Kapkwen in Bomet County on Saturday that the government was finalising compensation and resettlement plans.
He said the Ministry of Lands was handling the exercise and that beneficiaries would be identified in due course.
Agriculture Principal Secretary Paul Ronoh also said President Ruto’s directive to resettle the families was being implemented.
“I want to report to you that finally the government has found land to resettle families evicted from Mau Forest in Narok South and Narok West, and the landless in Angata Barikoi, Kilgoris Constituency,” Dr Ronoh said.
Kericho Senator Aaron Cheruiyot.
Senate Majority Leader Aaron Cheruiyot had earlier disclosed that the government had completed payment for land earmarked for the exercise.
“The government has now paid for the land as promised and the title handed over to the Ministry of Lands. Pending now is the public handover of the title deed to locals at a date to be announced,” the Kericho senator said.
He also revealed that the government was in the final stages of acquiring more than 5,000 acres owned by the family of former Provincial Commissioner Isaiah Cheluget in Tendwet, Narok West Constituency.
According to Mr Cheruiyot, a deposit has already been paid, while surveyors are finalising subdivision plans before individual title deeds are issued to beneficiaries.
He added that verification of beneficiaries, conducted jointly by the Ministries of Lands and Interior, had been completed and modalities for compensation were being finalised.
The plight of Mau evictees has dominated politics in the South Rift for nearly two decades, featuring prominently in every General Election since 2007.
The first major eviction took place in 2005 under President Mwai Kibaki’s administration. Then Lands Minister Amos Kimunya sparked outrage after declaring that title deeds held by settlers were “mere pieces of paper” that the government could revoke.
The late former Prime Minister Raila Odinga during a tree-planting exercise in Kiptunga, Mau Forest in Molo, January 16, 2010.
During the 2007 campaigns, ODM leader Raila Odinga pledged to compensate and resettle the families if elected president.
However, after the formation of the Grand Coalition Government in 2008, Mr Odinga strongly backed conservation efforts and fresh evictions from the forest, arguing that the Mau water tower had to be protected. The decision alienated many residents and contributed to the loss of ODM’s political support in parts of the Rift Valley.
Former President Uhuru Kenyatta also promised to resolve the dispute, but little progress was made. Instead, his administration oversaw another major eviction in 2018, during which homes were demolished and property destroyed in an operation led by then Rift Valley Regional Commissioner George Natembeya.
Officials said more than 61,000 families were affected by the operation.
The evictions also disrupted public services. Fifteen government-funded schools were closed, teachers redeployed and local administrators transferred after an electric fence was erected around the forest to create a buffer zone.
President Ruto, then Deputy President, promised affected families they would be resettled but also assured members of the Maasai community that ownership of the Mau Forest had been settled.
Political analysts say the balancing act cost him support among sections of the Kipsigis community.
President Ruto has since announced that 12,000 families will be resettled, while about 2,000 households have already received Sh300,000 each as compensation.
Former Emurua Dikirr Member of Parliament the late Johana Ng’eno.
Speaking during the burial of former Emurua Dikirr MP Johana Ngeno in March this year, the President said the government was negotiating to purchase Cheluget family land in Narok West and another 1,500 acres in Angata Barikoi for resettlement.
However, local leaders argue that the compensation offered is inadequate.
During registration of beneficiaries last year, more than 28,000 families turned up with land documents, including title deeds.
Community leader Johnstone Kiptanui said the Sh300,000 payout could neither buy land nor enable victims to rebuild their lives.
Resident Pauline Cheptoo said many families had endured years of suffering after living in makeshift camps.
Narok Senator Ledama Ole Kina, who previously supported the evictions, has also changed his position and now backs compensation and resettlement.
Former Bomet Governor Isaac Ruto has consistently maintained that the evictees deserve compensation and dignified resettlement, arguing that they have suffered enough.
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