The Forestry Department in Kenya is the government forestry administration and manager of state-owned forests. Forest revenue is mostly obtained from the production of major forest products (especially roundwood from forest plantations), plus some small amounts from licence fees and the production of minor forest products. In addition, a number of other taxes and fees are also collected from the sector by other parts of government.
Forest charges are supposed to cover forest management costs. The systems used to set charges, assess and collect revenue have improved, but total revenue collection is still not sufficient to cover all costs. Most forest revenue is credited to the Treasury who, in return, finance the budget of the Forestry Department. In addition, donors provide most funding for the development budget of the Forestry Department.
The total budget of the Forestry Department is in adequate, resulting in significant under-investment in forest management and other activities. This report presents a number of recommendations about how revenue could be increased and the efficiency of the Forestry Department improved.