1) Mr. Steve Munene

Adaptive forest management, guided by clearly defined objectives and long-term ecological research, is a vital strategy for dryland restoration. Turkana, one of Kenya’s driest and most ecologically fragile regions, faces persistent challenges of water scarcity, land degradation, and food insecurity. For the past 13 years, the Furrows in the Desert (FID) program run by missionary community of St. Paul apostles (MCSPA), with support from KKL-JNF and other partners, has worked with over 70 farming groups in northern Turkana and is now expanding into central and southern areas. The initiative promotes integrated land management through sustainable agriculture, water harvesting, afforestation, and grazing management. The farming clusters operate around centralized, solar-powered water systems that enable efficient drip irrigation. Alongside farming, communities are trained in water conservation techniques, including watershed management and rainwater harvesting, improving agricultural productivity and food security. Afforestation efforts, using native and fruit tree species, to strengthen soil structure, provide shade and windbreaks, support biodiversity, and contribute to nutrition and livelihoods. Improved grazing practices are also being introduced to rehabilitate degraded rangelands, increase fodder availability, reduce pressure on natural vegetation, and enhance aquifer recharge. By integrating farming, forestry, and livestock management under an agro-silvopastoral model, the program demonstrates that community-driven capacity building can transform arid landscapes into productive, resilient ecosystems. The Turkana experience offers practical lessons and scalable strategies for sustainable dryland restoration and climate adaptation across Africa and other semi-arid regions.