NAIROBI, Kenya, May 20 — Interior Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen and Kenya’s Ambassador and Permanent Representative to UNEP Ida Odinga will on Thursday headline a peace and conservation race in the Cherangany Hills as part of an ambitious initiative aimed at restoring degraded ecosystems and creating green jobs for youth.
The 10-kilometre Cherangany Hills Peace and Conservation Race, to be held at Tebe Grounds in Kapyego Ward, Elgeyo-Marakwet County, is expected to bring together elite athletes, community groups, conservationists and government officials in a campaign linking environmental protection with peace-building and economic recovery in Kenya’s North Rift region.
The event will serve as a curtain-raiser for the launch of the Cherangany Hills Ecosystem Restoration for Livelihood Improvement, Sustainability and Harmony (CHERISH) programme, a long-term initiative targeting the rehabilitation of one of Kenya’s five major water towers.
Organised by CHERISH and the OKM foundation, under Murkomen’s patronage, the race seeks to rally communities around environmental restoration, sustainable livelihoods and social cohesion in a region that has experienced recurrent conflict driven by competition over shrinking natural resources.
“When rivers dry up, grazing land dwindles and there is no water for livestock, desperation turns into conflict,” Murkomen said ahead of the event, which will also be attended by world 1,500 metres record holder Faith Kipyegon.
Murkomen said the CHERISH programme would not only rehabilitate the fragile ecosystem but also provide alternative livelihoods for young people and individuals abandoning banditry and environmentally destructive activities.
The initiative targets the restoration of 62,038 hectares of degraded escarpments and riparian land, alongside the protection of 20 critical water springs within the Cherangany ecosystem.
Environmental experts and government officials have warned that years of illegal logging, encroachment, charcoal burning and unsustainable farming practices have severely degraded the Cherangany Hills, leading to biodiversity loss, shrinking water catchments and recurring landslides.
Organisers say the initiative aims to reverse the damage while creating employment opportunities through reforestation, watershed protection and other climate-focused projects.
The race will feature a 10-kilometre elite competition, a 5-kilometre community run, a 2-kilometre fun race and a 2-kilometre corporate challenge, coinciding with the 2026 International Day for Biological Diversity.
The official launch of the CHERISH programme will take place on Friday and will be presided over by Deputy President Kithure Kindiki and Environment Cabinet Secretary Deborah Mlongo Barasa.
