How State, culture and religion have intertwined to protect forest

Custodian of the shrine Wambugu Nyamu, a member of the only 10 High priest (Agongoni) in the Agikuyu community. Nyamu says the shrines were a prophecy between Mau Mau freedom fighters and God. The fighters promised their creator that they would set up a shrine in the forest where the community will be interceding for the nation. June 12, 2021. [Mose Sammy, Standard]

A Kigongona Kia Agikuyu shrine signpost welcomes you to the Mt Kenya Forest. Also on the signpost are warnings, six of them, without further elaboration.

You are just about to enter a holy place. It is holy for Christians, it is a shrine for the Agikuyu people, where their high priests, the Agongoni, offer prayers when the country is faced with calamities of different magnitudes. And they are not the only stakeholders; the national government has entered a pact with the users of this section of the forest, through the Kenya Forest Service (KFS), to ensure it is kept in its most natural form.