Environment, Climate Change and Forestry CS Soipan Tuya on Tuesday oversaw the torching of 13.5 tonnes of sandalwood in a ceremony conducted at the DCI Headquarters in Nairobi.
Tuya said the wood was extracted from endangered species of trees from forests across the country and were impounded during a number of sting operations in Samburu County.
Tuya says the exercise was meant to show the government’s commitment to tame illicit networks seeking to reap from the surge in illicit trade of sandalwood and its products.
She noted that the global demand for the wood oil had fueled a wide network of traffickers seeking to exploit both community and KFS-managed forests to illegally harvest the woods.
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The CS noted that despite the Government banning the harvest of sandalwood in 2007 the ban had not managed to tame the overexploitation of the endangered tree across Kenya.
He ministry through Kenya Forest Service (KFS) is collaborating with the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI), Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP) and the Judiciary to curb the illegal harvesting of sandalwood in community forests across Kenya.
DCI Director Mohamed Amin confirmed the East African Sandalwood had been listed within the Wildlife Conservation and Management Act Sixth Schedule as an Endangered Species.
“We appreciate the need for multi-agency collaboration in the fight against wildlife, forestry and fisheries crimes in Kenya, and acknowledge that no institution can single-handedly manage this fight,” said Amin.
The DCI boss, in that regard, appealed to members of the public to continue sharing information with the DCI to help tame the illegal exploitation of the sandalwood trees.
Other dignitaried present included US Ambassador to Kenya Megan Whitman, KFS Chief Conservator Julius Kamau and Kahawa Law Court Senior Principal Magistrate Boaz Ombewa.
