Kilifi Baobab trees blocked from leaving Kenya are set for export again

Citizen Digital on Monday spotted the 6 huge trees loaded in trucks heading towards Mombasa, where they are set to be transported outside the country. 

The huge trucks on Monday blocked the Mombasa- Malindi highway, causing a traffic snarl-up for hours.

The trees, which started being uprooted in November 2022, were being exported by an American company, Ariba SeaWeed International, which said that they received a movement permit from the Kenya Forest Service (KFS).

This is after the private company together with communities in Kilifi County entered into an agreement with the National Environment Management Agency (NEMA) to export the trees.

It was later learnt that the trees were illegally uprooted as NEMA had not yet given a permit and instead, the company obtained a NEMA EIA license that was irregularly awarded by the county director of Environment in Kilifi County.

In a petition filed at the Malindi High Court on February 2023, Kituo cha Sheria noted that the private company exploited the residents of Kilifi County who are mostly grappling with the perennial drought experienced nationwide and were solely relying on the benefits of the Baobab trees.

Kituo further claimed that Ariba Seaweed swindled the residents into making them accept low amounts of money for the trees without considering factors like the age of the trees, which they argue would increase the monetary value.

They also faulted the Kilifi County Government for offering the license to Ariba Seaweed without complying with the necessary authorization required and also failed to ensure there was a clear and transparent benefit-sharing formula for the community.

The petitioner also wanted the affected communities Kilifi County to be compensated and the uprooting of trees to be halted immediately.

They also ordered that the respondents should restore the trees uprooted by Ariba Seaweed in their natural environment.

Similarly, they want the government to educate the public on the importance of conserving the Baobab tree.