Cairo – a favorite fig tree in Kenya’s capital, Nairobi, will live to see another day – and possibly another second century.
On Wednesday, the head of the Nairobi metropolitan area said the 100-year-old fig tree that is being removed to make way for a new expressway would not only be preserved but also preserved as a national symbol of environmental protection.
The announcement was a victory for both Kenyan environmentalists and cultural leaders, who condemned efforts to cut down or relocate fig trees, which are considered sacred by many communities. Some experts doubted that the ancient tree, which is four storeys high, would have survived if it had been cut down and moved.
“Any development that is going to happen here will not touch this tree,” said Major General Mohammed Badi, director general of the Nairobi Metropolitan Services. During a visit to the fig tree In the bustling commercial district of the Westlands.
Mr Badi said he had instructed city officials Fences on trees And beautify the area so that city dwellers can enjoy the space. He also signed a declaration recognizing the tree as “a metaphor for Kenya’s cultural and environmental heritage” and “Nairobi’s commitment to environmental protection”.
Officials announced in October that they planned to cut down the tree to make way for the construction of the four-lane highway Nairobi Expressway, funded by China. The 17-mile highway, scheduled for completion in 2022, is expected to reduce traffic in central Nairobi and create thousands of jobs.
But from the outset the project has been critical of environmental groups who have said air quality and impacts on green spaces have not been taken into account. Despite Nairobi being famous as the “Green City in the Sun”, parks, forests and gardens have been declining in the city due to commercial and infrastructural development in recent years.
Activists also lamented the cutting down of dozens of trees on the highway and filed a case against the environmental regulator for approving the project. Kenyan law usually requires the pending project to be postponed for a court decision, but construction is ongoing.
Environmentalists on Wednesday welcomed the decision to save the fig tree but called for more action to save the capital’s green space.
“The move by the National Metropolitan Services is very welcome and a good starting point for negotiating around ethical development and investment in Kenya,” said George Mewangla, a former impact agency who opposes Effect Vena, a social impact agency for Purpose Climate. . Construction, said in a statement.
But, he added, “we have to ensure nature and our living environment coexist and complement infrastructural development at all levels.”
Vanjira Mathai, whose father Environmentalist and Nobel Peace Prize winner Wangari Mathal, Welcomed the decision to save the trees.
“From what we now know about the role of green spaces and trees in keeping cities livable, we should work to make Nairobi greener and more inclusive,” said Mrs. Mathai, chairperson of the Wangari Mathal Foundation, in an interview.
