Adrian Leitoro

Ndottos Forest Reserve covers an area of approximately 97,165 ha. The mountains lie between Matthew’s ranges and Mt. Ngiro to the south and north respectively. The ecosystem is a source of springs that usually dry up a few kilometers downstream due to high evaporation and percolation rates. Subsistence pastoralism is the mainland use activity around Ndottos Ranges. Considering the local community is mainly pastoralist, Ndotto provides dry season grazing areas to a large quantity of livestock. The annual flow for both the springs and rivers has been decreasing over the years due to deforestation and intensive use of water upstream. Forest fires are frequent and are mainly caused by accidental fires when harvesting honey and also by pastoralists who burn vegetation to allow for re-growth.

The project aims to restore this important dryland ecosystem. We will set up a tree nursery in the ecosystem at Ngurunit. The nursery will be a source of native tree species for our restoration work and will be jointly run by indigenous women from the area and WEP. The women will be involved in nursery operations that include taking care of the seedling until they are ready to plant.