“A mango processing factory will be built in Machakos within five years,” CS Ndungu says during a tree-planting campaign.

Machakos Governor Wavinya Ndeti on Friday hosted the Minister of Finance, Professor Njuguna Ndunwu, and led local residents in a tree-planting drive in Karama County.

Wavinya and Professor Ndungu planted several trees at the Machakos governor's office on Thursday morning before heading to Muumandu Forest, where dozens of residents took part in the tree-planting drive.

Speaking on the occasion, Professor Ndungu urged residents of Machakos to consider fruit trees, particularly mango and avocado, noting that fruit trees have multiple benefits.

“Within the next five years, we need to build a mango pulp processing factory here in Machakos. There is a lot of potential for value addition as well as commercial processing of the fruit,” said the Finance CS.

To ensure high tree survival rates, the CS urged residents to consider trees adapted to their respective ecological locations.

“We have to work hard and ensure that every tree that is planted survives. What we are doing now is ecosystem restoration. Destroying our agro-ecological zones We did it,” Professor Ndung’u said.

Governor Wavinya said tree planting is important to combat the effects of climate change.

“Kenyans must plant and grow trees in droves as one way to combat the effects of climate change,” Wavinya said.

The governor pointed out that county governments are contributing to tree planting and environmental conservation, and called for joint cooperation and goodwill with the central government in promoting tree planting.

“I can say that about 11 million trees have been planted in Machakos County since decentralization began. This shows that devolution is working. Decentralization is where the people are. and this is where its impact should be felt,” she said.

The district chief likewise said that the district government had distributed a wide variety of trees to all the nine sub-counties and called on the County Members of Parliament (MCAs) to spearhead tree planting in their respective wards. Ta.