What is "embobut"

Embobut (Embobit, Embotut) is one of the administrative wards for the Marakwet East Constituency in Elgeyo-Marakwet County. The area is a major water towers (catchment basins) in the Cherangani Hills. This area collectively with other water towers supply Eldoret town and its environs with water, it also supplies water to the Kerio River which flows through the Cheploch Gorge in Baringo to Lake Turkana via the Turkwel Gorge. The Embobut Forest is the largest in the Cherangani Hills Forest, but it is, however, under threat because of illegal squatters. who have destroyed the natural habitat and the forest ecosystem thus causing streams in the area to dry. The government has however moved in to protect the water tower by evicting thousands of people form the area.

Whereas there is the general believe by outsiders that there exists "illegal squaters", the truth of the matter is that the entire population inhabiting Embobut call the forest home. The colonial policy of allocating all lands and forests to the crown notwithstanding the native inhabitants and subsequent adoption of the dame policies by the new republic has let to continued fight for the land b/w the government and the locals. The locals believe that clearing the forest will render the forest acts useless. There is need to recognize the natives and quantify the environmental loss and effects retrogressive policies on the local populace in terms of education, infrastructure and health.