Kenya has unveiled a new tech-powered system to monitor and help protect the country's forest ecosystem from fires in the face of increasing threats worsened by the impact of climate change.

According to the Ministry of Environment, Climate Change and Forests, the digital telecommunication and video surveillance network is poised to enable firefighters with the capacity to offer timely responses to forest fire outbreaks.

This innovation leverages satellite systems and cameras that relay signals to central control, which is configured to enable the Kenya Forest Service (KFS) to identify with ease the exact location for fires to offer corrective action.

"The technology will build Kenya's institutional capacity to respond to the threat from forest fires, thus ultimately contributing to the goal of achieving 30 percent tree cover," said Ministry of Environment, and Climate Change Cabinet Secretary Aden Duale. 

The CS added that the project, which is part of a US$22 million French-funded project, aligns with Kenya's 15 billion tree-growing initiative.

Overall, the programme will further equip the Kenya Forest Service with cutting-edge tools including fire engines, personal protective clothing, chaff trucks, thereby improving its capacity and preparedness to handle risks through technology and training.

Currently, the fire monitoring and response system will be deployed in most at-risk forests including the Aberdare, Mau, and Mount Kenya Forest ecosystems. Together, these forests and water towers cover 14 counties and remain under constant risk of fire as climate change drives rising temperatures and increased chances of human activity in forests.

Kenya’s peak forest fire season

According to Global Forest Watch, the peak fire season in Kenya usually starts in early January and lasts around 14 weeks. 

"There were 757 (Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite) VIIRS fire alerts reported between 27th of November 2023 and 25th of November 2024 considering high confidence alerts only," Global Forest Watch notes in its website.

VIIRS is an advanced remote-sensing instrument used in satellite missions to collect high-resolution imagery and data about Earth's surface and atmosphere. It plays a critical role in monitoring weather, climate, and environmental conditions.

In Kenya, the most fires, that is 2,652 incidents were recorded in 2012. Global Forest Watch statistics show that the year Kenya suffered the most tree cover loss due to fires was 2022 with 190 ha lost to fires representing roughly 2.9 percent of all tree cover loss for that year.

Further, between 2001 and 2023, Kenya is estimated to have lost 2.32 kha of tree cover from fires and 384 kha from all other drivers of loss, Global Forest Watch notes.

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