Women restoring mangrove forests get help after Nation's story

Efforts by women in Lamu to restore mangrove forests this week received a boost after an environmental philanthropist from the United States sponsored their activities.

Mahmoud Khamis Jillo, a Lamu-born US citizen, in coordination with the Matondoni Women Conservation Groups, the Kenya Forest Services (KFS), the Community Forest Association, and the Mokowe Environmental Action group, led a one-day initiative to plant mangroves in most of the degraded areas in the county.

Mr Jillo said he got interested in the women’s activities after reading a story on Nation.Africa in August last year that highlighted their efforts, including establishing mangrove nurseries.

He learned that despite the women’s zeal and determination to undertake such crucial duty, they were facing challenges in getting sponsors to buy their mangrove seedlings and support them in their restoration and environmental conservation duties.

Also read: KFS seeks to save endangered mangroves

Touched

On Monday, Mr Jillo bought over 100 mangrove seedlings from the women and aided their planting. He promised to sponsor conservation activities every time he visits Kenya, particularly Lamu, where he was raised. He left for the US almost three decades ago.

“I was touched by the Matondoni women’s article in the Daily Nation (Nation.Africa) on mangrove restoration. That’s why I flew all the way from the US to visit these women and support their initiative. I grew up in Lamu and I understand the ecologically important role mangroves play in terms of supporting local fisheries, providing protection from storms, and, most importantly, resilience against climate change,” said Mr Jillo.

“I have done this today just for the beginning. I will be doing such efforts at least annually. I believe such effort is essential to conserve, preserve, and restore the diverse coastal marine environments. My happiness is to see that the women’s target to have Lamu fully restored in terms of mangrove forest cover is successful.”

Gratitude

Matondoni Women Groups Spokesperson Swabra Musa thanked Mr Jillo for his support. She expressed confidence that through collaborations and partnerships, substantial positive change in environmental awareness and restoration can be achieved.

This can subsequently improve the lives of those relying on such resources, including the over 30,000 families of Lamu who rely on selective mangrove harvesting and logging for their livelihoods.

“We welcome more well-wishers, the likes of Mr Jillo, to come in to enable our dream of restoring the local mangrove forests to come true,” said Ms Musa.

Also read: Mangrove carbon trade in Coast to be expanded

Hafswa Mohamed Tola described Mr Jillo’s intervention as timely. “We shall continue establishing mangrove nurseries; at the same time, we pray that more environmental philanthropists can show up to aid these restoration activities. We believe such efforts will lead to a more sustainable environmental and economic future for generations to come,” said Ms Tola.

Zero degraded sites

Lamu County Forest Conservator Peter Mwangi noted that Mr Jillo’s effort would aid the KFS’s target to have zero degraded sites in Lamu in three years. Mangroves play important roles in the ecosystem, including preventing coastal erosion and providing a buffer against storm surges.

They also absorb about four times more carbon than their terrestrial counterparts, making them important in tackling climate change. Mangroves further provide important habitats for a variety of animals on land and underwater.

Most reef fishes and sharks, for instance, begin their early life in mangrove ecosystems, which serve as a hatching and feeding ground and offer protection from predators.

[email protected]