Baringo Communities Unite to Combat Destructive Mathenge Weed as Government Forms New Strategy
Indigenous communities in Baringo County are stepping up efforts to reclaim their land and livelihoods from Prosopis juliflora, the invasive mathenge plant that has devastated livestock, pasture and biodiversity for more than two decades. Once introduced as a solution to drought and land degradation, the species has grown into an ecological menace, threatening the livelihoods of the Ilchamus, Tugen and Pokot communities across Marigat. Farmers and herders now say the weed has become one of the region’s biggest environmental challenges, killing livestock and consuming vast tracts of arable land.
Residents recount years of painful losses, including livestock deaths caused by the sweet yet poisonous mathenge pods, which cause tooth decay, irreversible nerve damage and starvation in goats and cattle. Community leaders trace their struggle back to 2006 when they sued the national government for introducing the plant without proper environmental assessment. The High Court ruled in their favour in 2007, declaring mathenge a noxious weed and directing the formation of a technical commission to assess damages. But compensation was never implemented, prompting elders to threaten further legal action in 2016 and 2018. Meanwhile, the plant continues to choke lakeshores, grazing fields, homesteads and schools across Marigat, making cohabitation difficult and fueling inter-community competition for shrinking pasture.
Today, however, communities—supported by the Kenya Forestry Research Institute (KEFRI) and local administrators—are embracing practical mitigation measures. Charcoal producers are converting mature mathenge trees into fuel, generating income while reducing bush density, while pastoralists are shifting to agro-pastoralism to reduce dependence on open grazing. Farmers in villages such as Ndao, Salabani and Kailer are now growing maize, vegetables and livestock feed on reclaimed land, though many say clearing the deep-rooted weed remains costly and labour-intensive. A new National Strategy and Action Plan proposes biological, chemical, mechanical and utilisation methods, giving residents hope that long-term suppression of the invasive weed is possible.
With biological trials underway and communities adopting farming as a buffer against pasture loss, Baringo residents say progress is finally visible—livestock deaths are fewer, crops are improving, and multi-ethnic groups are working together in ways not seen before. But even as national efforts gain pace, the Ilchamus Council of Elders maintains that justice is still owed. Their push for compensation continues, alongside a collective determination to turn Marigat into a model for managing Prosopis juliflora across Kenya’s pastoral regions.