KFS defends Muthaiga Golf Club invasion, to hold meeting over Karura Forest encroachment

• KFS said Karura Forest was surveyed in the early 1920s, with the survey registered in 1923, before the forest was declared a Forest Reserve in 1932.
• The forest, which covers approximately 1,041.1 hectares, was later declared a Central Forest in 1964, alongside other state forests gazetted before independence.

KFS officers at the Muthaiga Golf Club course.

The Kenya Forest Service (KFS) has defended its move to take over part of the Muthaiga Golf Club course, saying the section in question encroaches on the gazetted Karura Forest by about 21.8 hectares.

KFS said Karura Forest was surveyed in the early 1920s, with the survey registered in 1923, before the forest was declared a Forest Reserve in 1932.

The forest, which covers approximately 1,041.1 hectares, was later declared a Central Forest in 1964, alongside other state forests gazetted before independence.

The dispute centres on Land Reference Number (LR No.) 13134/3, which Muthaiga Golf Club claims to own.

According to KFS, the parcel encroaches onto the gazetted Karura Forest by approximately 21.8 hectares.

The development comes hours after Muthaiga Golf Club informed its members that KFS had moved onto the course and restricted access to the Front Nine, from Hole No. 2 through to Hole No. 9, arguing that the affected section falls within the Karura Forest boundary.

KFS said the conflicting positions over ownership have prompted plans for a meeting between the parties.

“Owing to the difference in ownership positions between the two entities, a meeting will be held at KFS HQ aimed at seeking an amicable solution,” KFS said.

The meeting is expected to bring together the relevant parties to address the ownership dispute and determine the status of the contested section of land.

Muthaiga Golf Club, meanwhile, has said its driving range and parking areas remain unaffected, with the Front Nine remaining off-limits to members as efforts to resolve the dispute continue.