Raha Kids Education Rehabilitation and Re-Integration Centre in Mathatani Ward Machakos County sitting on a 10-acre piece of land is home to 105 boys 82 at primary level, 13 at secondary level, 8 at vocational training, and 2 at college level.
Since inception in 2010, the Centre has been on a mission to transform the lives of the children. The Centre which operates on 3 main pillars; Education development, Physical development, and Spiritual nourishment on 15th June 2024 the Centre embraced a fourth pillar which is environmental stewardship. Hence, on this day the Centre hosted the team from Planet Plus Kenya for tree planting for the second time. The first time the team visited was 13th April 2024 to plant fruit trees mainly avocados and tree tomatoes.
For the second time around, the team was equipped with 2,000 trees acquired from CKL Africa LTD, two days ahead of the event. The team together with the children of this centre engaged in a rigorous tree planting activity with a vision in mind.
When speaking of Machakos County, the first thing that comes to mind is the scotching sun hovering over sparsely populated land. The open spaces occasioned with drying grasses or traces of slow growing shrubs; an ideal environment for wildlife and not very much for human beings.
Therefore, it was only expected for the management and children of Raha Kids Education Rehabilitation and Re-Integration Centre to think of manipulating their Centre to fit their needs. Their biggest needs being, their ability to curb soil erosion, walk or shit under a shed from the scotching sun of the semi-arid Machakos, to block the winds that carry with it tiny rocks that injure their eyes and to improve their soils.
The team at CKL Africa LTD did a good job selecting 7 ideal tree species that would help the children, administration and Planet Plus Kenya to achieve their shared goal.
Types of trees that we planted and purposes they will play
Casuarina equisetifolia; if the Haller Park ecosystem in Mombasa is anything to go by then planting this trees gets you one step closer towards transforming a landscape. One of the Centre’s aim is to transform the location on behalf of the children who call this place a home. Therefore, just like Haller park which was transformed from a waste land into a thriving ecosystem similarly, the Centre is likely to experience the same. Besides this tree is well known for fixing Nitrogen into the soil and can thrive in tough environments like the one of Raha Kids Education Rehabilitation and Re-Integration Centre in Machakos County.
Acacia tortilis; this goes without saying because this is a very common tree in Kenya, drought resistant, fast growing and indigenous. Therefore, it was common knowledge that we would plant it at a semi-arid location like the Raha Kids Education Rehabilitation and Re-Integration Centre. The Centre’s botanist even suggested that we grow the tree at the edge so it could play its role adequately. This side of the Centre is frequented by giraffes, Grants/Thompsons gazelles and even elands. Apart from the mammals, it is expected that this tree will attract insects giving the children a great learning experience on biodiversity.
(A point to note: the name Acacia has been revised to Vachellia).
Croton megalocarpus; this fast growing tree is known as a pioneer species a species whose presence on this ecosystem will alter its surroundings. As this tree inhabits this location it will create ideal conditions for other plants to come colonise the area. For instance, due to the litter it generates from shedding its leaves, the soil will be able to retain moisture longer thus allowing dormant seeds from even local vegetables to germinate.
Olea africana; one day out of curiosity, the kids at the Centre will start chasing after beautiful birds that will be attracted to the fruits of this tree then our work at this facility will be done. When working to improve a home for children, sparking curiosity and interest among them is usually considered a win. That is where Olea africana will come in handy. The fact that there is a high survival rate for this tree, means that there will be enough food to go round for birds and insects. Furthermore, the height of this tree will add to its usefulness, at a beautiful height of 15 Metres, shy and evasive birds will not mind patching here and making these trees their home.
Cordia africana; even though it is found in high altitude locations, this tree is a good addition to the Raha Kids Education Rehabilitation and Re-Integration Centre ecosystem because of its leaf litter will enrich the soil thus creating a conducive environment for other trees to thrive in. The same litter will slow down run off thus increasing water percolation into the soil to recharge ground water which is the main sources of water for the Centre.
Since the school maintains a farm for subsistence crops, once again the botanist had a preference for where this tree together with Grevillea robusta would be planted. He suggested that they demarcate the farm land and in return enjoy the water that will be supplied to the crops through drip irrigation. Additionally, the flowers produced by Cordia africana will attract bees to this ecosystem thus increasing the productivity of the farm.
Callistemon salignus; also known as white flower bottle brush is a great ornamental tree that attracts bees to an ecosystem. The Centre intents to grow it along paths for beautification purposes. This is another tree in this Centre that will enjoy frequent irrigation as planned by the management.
In the wake of climate change and biodiversity loss, Planet Plus Kenya looks to implement a comprehensive program in a few model schools. The organisation hopes to partner with organisations with the capacity to set up model facilities for segregation and management solid waste. This will allow the model schools to manage the waste they generate on site thus triggering a sense of sustainable consumption. Planet Plus Kenya looks to guide the school to the extent of them understanding how their consumption patterns affect the environment. For instance, we look forward to the day when the schools will shun procuring goods whose packaging they will not be able to manage on site.
Additionally, the organisation looks partner with industry experts and institutions for field trips and educational forums to enhance the capacity of student on environmental matters. In this regard the students will be challenged to innovate solutions to solve the unique challenges their schools are facing.
Raha Kids Education Rehabilitation and Re-Integration Centre and Seme Primary School are officially part of Planet Plus Kenya’s Education for Sustainable Development program. The organisation also hopes to on-board Kyumbi Secondary School and Nalepo Teagong Girls Secondary School where they left trees in the care of the students and the administration.
The team from the organisation hopes to engage the children in occasional mapping of biodiversity in these two schools. This will include the use of specific mobile applications to record and identify plants and animals present on the 10-acre plot. This will take place every six months for three years which is the ideal period for absolute assisted succession to have taken place.