Why we have to safeguard this invaluable ecosystem
Tucked into the western edge of Kenya, Kakamega Forest is the last of its kind, the only remaining tropical rainforest in the country, and the easternmost remnant of a once-vast ecological corridor that stretched across the continent.
What survives today is a rare and vital landscape. One that continues to support hundreds of species found nowhere else in Kenya. One that regulates rainfall, feeds rivers and springs, and helps local communities farm, heal, and survive. One that holds deep cultural significance and generations of Indigenous knowledge.
Despite this, Kakamega remains largely invisible in global conservation narratives. Despite decades of efforts to protect it, the forest is still under threat from invasive species, ongoing extraction, and a lack of coordinated, long-term support and management.
To understand why this forest needs attention now more than ever, we need to start with what makes it so extraordinary.
A rare forest on the edge of extinction
Kakamega Forest is the last surviving remnant of the Guineo-Congolian rainforest belt in East Africa. This once-continuous forest system stretched across Central Africa and into the Great Lakes region, but today, Kakamega is its easternmost edge.
Covering roughly 200 square kilometres, it might be smaller than better-known forest systems, but its ecological importance is immense.
Kakamega is recognised as a Key Biodiversity Area and is home to:
- Over 380 plant species, including many endemic medicinal plants
- More than 400 butterfly species, making it one of the most diverse butterfly habitats in Africa
- Rare primates such as the De Brazza’s monkey and black-and-white colobus
- Bird species found nowhere else in Kenya, including the Turner’s eremomela, African blue flycatcher, and great blue turaco
- Endangered amphibians and reptiles reliant on intact forest conditions
What makes Kakamega especially unique is that many of its species are forest-dependent. They cannot survive in fragmented landscapes or altered ecosystems. When the canopy disappears, so do the conditions they need to feed, reproduce, and move safely.
That’s what makes deforestation here so dangerous. It doesn’t just reduce tree cover, it pushes entire species toward local extinction.
Forests like Kakamega shape water systems
Kakamega Forest plays a critical role in stabilising rainfall patterns, reducing surface runoff, and feeding streams and rivers that support the surrounding communities. Its trees and undergrowth regulate the local microclimate, trap moisture, and protect vital underground aquifers.
However, as deforestation and degradation have increased, the forest’s ability to hold water has started to diminish.
Streams that once flowed year-round are now drying up during the dry season. Flash floods have become more common in heavy rains, as water runs off degraded slopes instead of soaking into the soil. Furthermore, siltation has begun to affect water quality downstream, reducing access for both people and wildlife.
The connection between Kakamega and water security in Kenya are undeniable. When the forest suffers, so do the farms, homes, and families that depend on its rivers, springs, and access to clean water becomes harder to maintain.
Kakamega’s cultural value is disappearing alongside its biodiversity
Beyond its ecological value, Kakamega is deeply embedded in local cultural and spiritual life.
For generations, the forest has been a source of food, medicine, ceremony, and knowledge. Sacred groves have been protected through taboos and ritual use. Trees have been used not only for timber, but for healing and initiation rites. Elders have passed down oral traditions that describe the forest as a living relative.
Today, many of those traditions are under threat.
With the decline of traditional stewardship systems, younger generations are growing up disconnected from the forest’s cultural meaning. In Kakamega town, many residents live just minutes from the forest but have never set foot inside due to visitor fees. There are no educational materials in local schools about the trees, plants, or stories held within the forest. As economic pressures mount, more families are pushed to extract from the forest for fuel or income.
When cultural ties to the forest are lost, so is the motivation to protect it. Conservation becomes disconnected from local priorities – making it harder to build long-term stewardship where it’s needed most.
Restoration alone is not enough to save Kakamega
Despite decades of restoration projects, Kakamega remains deeply vulnerable.
Invasive species like guava and lantana are spreading rapidly through disturbed forest edges, making it difficult for native trees to regenerate. Illegal logging and charcoal production continue, often without enforcement. Even in areas where trees have been planted, restoration often fails because forest authorities allow illegal logging, grazing, and invasive species to continue unchecked, undoing progress before young trees have a chance to establish.
Much of this stems from a deeper problem: a lack of long-term investment, community stewardship, and coordinated forest governance.
Without a shared vision that combines ecological restoration with traditional knowledge and community resilience, restoration risks becoming a short-term intervention rather than a lasting solution.
How we’re evolving restoration work in Kakamega
At Leaving a Legacy, we’re committed to supporting the long-term health of Kakamega Forest. Our work in this region focuses on restoring degraded areas, protecting remaining biodiversity, and strengthening local capacity to care for the forest over time. We partner with individuals and organisations on the ground to holistically restore this invaluable ecosystem in a way that ensures both biodiversity and local communities thrive.
