Safaricom PLC has committed Ksh. 15 million to a two-year Biodiversity Restoration Project. The initiative aims to mitigate the environmental impact of its ongoing national network expansion and reaffirm the company’s commitment to achieving net-zero emissions by 2050.
The core of the initiative involves a unique partnership model where Safaricom collaborates with the public and private institutions that host its Base Transceiver Stations (BTS). The goal is ambitious: to plant 250,000 indigenous and fruit trees across 7,000 BTS sites nationwide.
Dr. Peter Ndegwa, CEO of Safaricom PLC, emphasized that responsible expansion requires recognizing and offsetting environmental costs.
“As we expand our network to connect more Kenyans to reliable voice and internet services, we recognise that some of our activities, such as building base stations and laying fiber, can have unavoidable effects on the environment,” said Dr. Ndegwa. “Through this project, we are reaffirming our commitment to environmental stewardship by working with communities, public institutions, and private sector partners to restore ecosystems and advance our decarbonisation journey.”
The project’s integration of both indigenous and fruit trees is designed to enhance local ecosystems and provide tangible benefits to the host communities.
This Ksh. 15 million investment is part of Safaricom’s broader, long-term sustainability agenda, which is anchored in the goal of becoming a net-zero carbon emitting company by 2050.
The restoration efforts also align directly with several major national and global climate frameworks:
- Kenya’s National Climate Change Action Plan
- United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (specifically on Climate Action and Life on Land).
“Our investment in biodiversity restoration is a testament to our belief that technology and sustainability can co-exist,” Dr. Ndegwa stated. “By integrating environmental protection into our operations, we are creating shared value for our business, communities, and the planet.”
The new initiative complements Safaricom’s existing tree-growing commitment. In partnership with the Kenya Forest Service, the company is already working to grow 5 million trees by 2030 through the reafforestation of degraded forests.
The company has made significant headway on this front, having already planted over 2.5 million trees across the country, covering more than 2,000 hectares of land. The new Ksh. 15 million project will expand these efforts to its thousands of operational site.