NCBA has stepped up its environmental restoration efforts through an agroforestry initiative in Kiambu County as it works towards its target of planting 10 million trees by 2030.
The lender planted indigenous trees at Kamwaki Coffee Estate during a World Environment Day event held in partnership with Boreka Group, bringing together farmers, conservation partners, community members and NCBA leadership.
During the exercise, participants planted 300 indigenous trees, adding to the 2,700 trees that have already been established at the coffee farm as part of ongoing ecosystem restoration efforts.
The initiative forms part of NCBA’s broader sustainability agenda, which focuses on climate action, sustainable agriculture and environmental conservation.
Speaking during the event, NCBA Bank Kenya Managing Director James Gossip said restoring productive agricultural landscapes is key to strengthening climate resilience while supporting long-term economic growth.
“Through agroforestry, we are demonstrating that environmental stewardship and economic growth can go hand in hand. Restoration must be practical, community-driven, and sustainable if we are to secure our future,” said Gossip.
The bank said that the program is one of the Change the Story sustainability programs that aims at promoting collective efforts towards solving climate and environmental problems in addition to encouraging sustainable development.
Following the launch of its 15 Sustainability Commitments in 2023, NCBA has managed to plant over 1.4 million trees in collaboration with various stakeholders including government institutions, conservation groups and local communities.
As per the bank, the total green and sustainable finance raised by the institution stands at KSh9.5 billion in 2025, benefiting more than 1.2 million livelihoods through various sustainability programs.
The lender also highlighted the growing role of agribusiness within its operations. The sector currently accounts for KSh21.3 billion in deposits and KSh22.8 billion in loans, reflecting continued activity within agricultural value chains.
The World Environment Day event also showcased the progress made through NCBA’s three-year partnership with Boreka Group.
The collaboration has thus seen the planting of about 340,000 trees throughout Kenya, with over 1,000 farmers being educated on how to practice sustainable agroforestry.
642 farmers have been directly involved via the project while creating 400 green jobs. The bank says that in addition to all the above, the collaboration has also yielded environmental results with the trees planted since the start of 2023 having sequestered around 5,000 tonnes of CO2e.
The project is projected to sequester a total lifetime of carbon emissions of over 765,000 tonnes within the next two decades.
Esther Mutuma, CEO at Boreka Group, together with Michael Gichuki, who is the owner of Kamwaki Coffee Estate, praised the partnership highlighting the role played by collaborations between the community, the private sector and environmental organizations in restoring the landscape and promoting climate resilience among the people.
Under its 2026 restoration programme, NCBA Bank aims to plant an additional 100,000 seedlings as part of its collaboration with Boreka Group. More than 40,000 tree seedlings have already been planted as of the end of May this year.
According to the lender, the Kamwaki project is likely to provide insight on how agroforestry could be incorporated into agriculture in ways that help achieve environmental restoration and climate change mitigation.
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