Department heads in Narok County have been challenged to lead the tree planting campaign by ensuring their office compounds have adequate tree cover.
Narok County Commissioner Isaac Masinde said the county has planted only 359, 000 trees this year, yet they had a target of planting 4.3 million trees before the short rains subsided.
He spoke during a County Implementation and Management Committee (CIMC) meeting held at the County Commissioner’s conference hall, where he asked government officers to help spearhead the tree planting agenda in a bid to achieve the set target.
‘We need to be in the active group that is planting trees so that we can achieve our target. Keep reporting what you have planted because every tree planted should be recorded in order to get the actual number of tree seedlings planted,’ Masinde said.
The county commissioner said over 5000 people had been evicted from the Maasai Mau Forest to reclaim the mega-water catchment land that had been greatly invaded.
He reminded the governmen
t officers that every individual has a target of planting 300 tree seedlings in 10 years to achieve the 15 billion tree target that the government aims to achieve.
Narok County Ecosystem Conservator Daniel Mkung said there are 37 private tree nursery beds in the county with over 5 million tree seedlings.
He called on organisations and well-wishers to buy the seedlings from the private farms at Sh50 per seedling to plant on their farms or office premises.
At the County Forest Office, Mkung said he has about 300,000 seedlings and is calling on the residents to volunteer to pick seedlings to plant on their farms.
According to the Meteorological Department, the current rains are expected to extend to January 2024, meaning the tree seedlings being planted now will flourish.
Source: Kenya News Agency
Whilst men and women suffer from similar difficulties regarding their mental health, there is a difference in the way they address them.
This is according to Namibian Police Force (NamPol) Oshana Regional Commander, Commissioner Naftal Lungameni Sakaria, during the third National Men’s Conference held at Ondangwa on Friday.
Sakaria stated that women tend to be more open in discussing their feelings and emotions, whereas men have a tendency to keep it to themselves and suffer in silence.
He indicated that with many men suffering in silence and experiencing feelings such as depression and anxiety, much more needs to be done for them to feel both encouraged and comfortable with opening up and taking that first step towards seeking help.
‘It is okay not to be okay. Masculinity comes from the cultural indoctrination of the male role – a belief system in some cultures where men are not expected to show emotions – men don’t cry,’ he said.
He added that it is also okay to cry as positive masculinity promotes eq
uality, respect and dignity of all people irrespective of their gender identities.
Furthermore, Sakaria stated that a total of 41 men committed suicide in the region this year compared to 43 last year, while two men were raped compared to three last year.
Source: Namibia Press Agency (NAMPA)