Kenya Forest Service (KFS) headquarters along Kiambu RoadKenya Forest Service (KFS) is set to meet the management of Muthaiga Golf Club to address a dispute over a section of the golf course that the agency claims falls within the boundaries of Karura Forest.
The meeting at KFS headquarters is expected to bring together officials from the two institutions as they seek an amicable solution to the ownership dispute.
KFS said the disagreement centres on a parcel of land claimed by Muthaiga Golf Club that it says encroaches on the gazetted forest by approximately 21.8 hectares.
According to KFS, Karura Forest was surveyed in the early 1920s, with the survey registered in 1923. The forest, covering approximately 1,041.1 hectares, was declared a Forest Reserve through Proclamation No. 44 of 1932.
It was later declared a Central Forest through Legal Notice No. 174 of May 20, 1964, alongside other state forests that had been gazetted before independence.
KFS said Muthaiga Golf Club claims ownership of Land Reference Number 13134/3, but the agency maintains that approximately 21.8 hectares of the parcel fall within the gazetted Karura Forest.
“Owing to the difference in ownership positions between the two entities, a meeting will be held at KFS HQs aimed at seeking an amicable solution,” KFS said.
The planned talks follow a confrontation over access to part of the golf course, with KFS moving onto the section covering the Front Nine from Hole No. 2 to Hole No. 9.
Muthaiga Golf Club chairman Dennis Mwirigi informed members that the agency had taken over access to the affected section, prompting the club to temporarily restrict members from using the holes.
“We wish to inform you that the Kenya Forest Service (KFS) has invaded the course and taken over access to the Front Nine, from Hole No. 2 through to Hole No. 9. KFS is purporting that this section of the course falls within Karura Forest,” Mwirigi said.
He said the club’s board was working to resolve the dispute.
“The Board is seized of the matter and is trying their level best to resolve the situation as urgently as possible,” he said.
Mwirigi added that the Front Nine would remain unavailable to members until further notice, while clarifying that the driving range and parking area were not affected.
The dispute has raised questions over the precise boundary between the golf club’s property and the gazetted forest, with the forthcoming meeting expected to focus on ownership records, survey boundaries and the status of the contested land.
