The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints’ donation of 20,000 mango, avocado and orange seedlings to Kisumu County, Kenya, marked the official launch of the East African country’s Trees for Food project on July 31.
This donation, and the Trees for Food project at large, seeks to provide food and income to the people of Kenya, as well as improve the environment by planting fruit trees in counties across the country, according to a recent report on the church’s Africa Newsroom.
“This is a national fruit tree planting project, and we are proud to begin in Kisumu,” said Elder George Munene, an Area Seventy of the church who attended the July 31 launch event. “Fruit trees are vital, not only for meeting nutritional needs, but also for creating income-generating opportunities and restoring our natural ecosystems.”
Vitalis Osodo, a county conservator at Kenya Forest Service, noted in the report that the church’s partnership in the project is “critical,” seeing as it helps boost their production and reach their targets at speeds they couldn’t have reached on their own.
“We are supposed to raise at least 9.1 million seedlings annually, but we don’t have the capacity,” Osodo explained. “That’s why this kind of support from partners like the church is so critical.”
Kisumu County Commissioner Benson Leparmorijo similarly noted the impact of the church’s donation, saying: “One of the key hurdles in achieving our national and county tree planting targets has been access to seedlings and space for nursery development. This donation is a game-changer.”
Leparmorijo further explained the donated seedlings have already been assigned to multiple stakeholders, including his office and Kenya’s forest service, National Youth Service and prisons.
Both Osodo and Kenneth Onyango — a member of Kisumu County’s executive committee who oversees the county’s department of agriculture — stated in the release that these and other stakeholders would labor with professionals, community groups, schools and other agencies to ensure the donated seedlings are well-planted and cared for.
Onyango added that both the church’s donation and national fruit-planting project align with Kisumu County’s ongoing strategy to promote fruit farming.
“This synchronizes perfectly with our vision,” he said. “Just two weeks ago, we received 5,000 seedlings from the national government. With this new donation, we’re more determined to promote fruit tree growing, both for nutrition and income generation.”
