 In September 2019, SEAFOR arranged an exchange visit to the Mount Kenya region where representatives of the Water Resource Users Associations and Community Forest Associations from the Mount and Mount Elgon forests in Kenya joined representatives from the Water User Committees and Collaborative Forest Management Groups from Uganda where the Water Towers project has been implementing activities to see and discuss livelihoods and rehabilitation projects that the local rural and CFAs are doing. When I was growing up the forest was almost bare. We had lots of bare land without trees and when the CFA began that was in the year 2007. That is when I started feeling some improvement, the forest started getting recovered. The purpose of this exchange visit was for us especially from Uganda to know how people from Mount Kenya are doing in forestry and water control. We want to learn what they are doing and their success stories and their challenges. The livelihood projects, all activities that we have include a fetch pod, we have a hatchery and a tree nursery. So these ones are supposed to ensure that there is sustainability of the activities even after flooding is over. Activities that we have here in Ghaziro are the paris that is planting establishment livelihood scheme which we are farming as we are planting trees so people produce food and the forest gain the trees. Then we also have some grazing. When we lay a livestock in our forest, then people will get the milk and the meat. They are learning about how to prepare seed beds and how to prevent diseases in Nasalee, how to prepare soil, how to prepare the manure and also using equipment like watering can. It's good because they are exchanging the ideas so that they can go at the rehabilitated Mount Aragon and other mountain all over the forest so that they can be able to conserve the forests. Another activity is that we protected water springs, ten of them all over our catchment. And that one also helped the community because the springs were protected, they were getting clean water so water bond diseases reduced. And this one we do this activity we collaborate like the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, Forestry to help us. And now that one is about a quarry but after doing away with that site they look for soil, good soil and they place there and plant trees there to recover for that area to be in good condition. We are also privileged to have a value addition unit for potatoes. We have modern facilities and when we get a proposal that has been funded we also set aside some money that will be used for rehabilitation and we work together with Dwarwa and Dwarmas, the associations that deal with water to see where do we rehabilitate, where do we put some setup that will assist in resource this water. There are various workshops that have been held, management especially of finances, administrative management so that there is transparency and accountability in what they do. The representation is supposed to be spread across the whole area. It is supposed to be gender sensitive and also the youth are supposed to be included. We also discussed about the various issues that come with the demonstration of the Lwarwa and CFA's governance issues, the conflict resolution. We did also look at what we have actually implemented, the challenges and successes in the implementation of those activities. I've seen wonders, I've seen quarries in the forest, I've seen the Lwar and the CFA working together. I saw a dam built by the Lwar and it is doing well for any cap generating. We need also to apply this activity to our area. We have some similarities with the challenges. We have problems with the rates of taxing those who are grazing in the forest and even the mobilisation of members to enroll in the CFA and the Lwar is also a challenge. Here in Kenya we have learnt a lot and we have got more which we can take to our people. They have developed many projects which help people who are being relocated from the forest. Another thing we have learnt from here is that they have managed to do their plan as well so that they have got the proposals done and they have got help from the donors and like in our area. In Muringato CFA area and then Muringato Water Resource Users Association area I realised that they were friends from the word go because every part on the site of Lwar and CFA understand the keen interest of protecting the forest and water. What is done on the left hand side is also known on the right hand side. But we in our area did not know that. Members of the Water Resource Users Association used to work differently and even distantly from the CFA members. So when we come here as leaders, those behind us which are very many shall also get that knowledge when we take it home back, not only for the immediate generation but for the future generation. It is always good to visit other places and compare yourself with those other places because when they came from Uganda they saw different things that are not actually being practised in Uganda and when they go back they take new ideas. We also get new ideas from this exchange programme. When we see what they are planning to do with the knowledge they acquired here we also see that whatever we have in Gadiru Forest will also be taken to other places and when I look at the future to come and the trend we are on when it comes to forest conservation, protection, there is a great improvement and I see a promising future when it comes to the forest and the natural resources around the forest. The beauty will return to its original state.