On December 6th, 2024, KEPSA Foundation, in partnership with Dow Chemicals and ChildFund Kenya, established an Orchard at Kiriri Primary School in Ndeiya, Kiambu County, where a total of 250 fruit trees and 110 indigenous trees were planted. KEPSA Foundation extends its appreciation to Elgon Kenya Managing Director, Dr. Bimal Kantaria, for his valuable partnership in this initiative through donating branding for the event and fertilizer for fruit trees.
This initiative was held as part of the Building Learning Opportunities with Orchard Management in Schools (BLOOM) program that aims at regreening and establishing orchards in schools in 6 counties namely, Kiambu, Taita Taveta, Makueni, Nyeri, Embu, and Tharaka Nithi.
KEPSA Foundation Trustee and Kiriri Primary School Orchard Champion, Ms. Jane Ngige, emphasized the importance of the tree planting initiative to both the school and the broader community. She commended the school for its excellent efforts in water harvesting, adding that this initiative was critical for support the tree growing program at the school. She further recognized the tree planting initiative as a meaningful act of love for the community and the environment, and encouraged everyone to track their tree planting progress on the Jaza Miti app to improve monitoring of tree growth.
KEPSA Foundation Executive Director, Ms. Gloria Ndekei offered an overview of the Foundation and the Kijani Initiative, sharing a success story from Mangu and Lenana High Schools. Through a partnership with KEPSA Foundation and other private sector members, the schools established orchards in 2018, and are now reaping the benefits of their fruit yields. She appreciated the strength of partnerships and progressive leadership demonstrated by the school and community. She highlighted that the good leadership is serving as a key model in achieving significant goals and unlocking future partnership opportunities. She expressed gratitude to all the partners for their invaluable support in making the event a success. Additionally, she called upon the participants to uphold transparency and the importance of integrity in all their endeavors.
Child Fund Kenya Partnership and Portfolio Manager, Ms. Caroline Ngonge, highlighted that the tree planting activity in the school aligned with ChildFund’s goal of creating a safe environment that children need to thrive. This is through partnering with schools for regreening initiatives, child protection interventions, and establishment of Aflatoun clubs among others. She noted that ChildFund was delighted to establish a longstanding partnership with the Kiriri Primary and Ndeiya Community through project interventions.
The School Headteacher, Mr. Samuel Mwangi school appreciated the fact that KEPSA Foundation selected Kiriri Primary School as a beneficiary of the project from among many other schools in the county. This thus opened up an opportunity for the school to showcase effective orchard management in schools in the County. He appreciated the school fraternity, Board of Management, pupils, and the community for their overwhelming support towards the initiative. He reiterated his commitment to ensuring the sustainability of the project by ensuring that the trees are well taken care of to serve the intended purpose.
The Area Chief, Mr. Jared Kamau said that this partnership came at an opportune time when the local administration had a target of promoting the planting 250 trees monthly. He called upon the community to continue with tree planting activities.
The event was attended by representatives from ChildFund Kenya, Elgon Kenya, Kenya Institute of Supplies Examination Board (KISEB), the School Board of management, teachers, pupils, parents, Area Administration, and community members.
