The African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights has adjudicated in favor of the Ogiek community, confirming that the Kenyan government infringed their rights through the Mau Forest long-standing forced evictions. In its decision dated December 4, 2025, in Arusha, Tanzania, the Court instructed Kenya to pay Sh57,850,000 to cover the material damages and Sh100,000,000 for moral damages, thus making the total reparations to be Sh157,850,000. The money is to be used for the community development of a trust fund for the Ogiek.
Moreover, the court required the government to deliver to the Ogiek a communal land title for their ancestral land in the Mau Forest, the instruction which was first issued in 2022 but has not been followed. Kenya is obliged to identify, mark, and register this land officially within a period of two years. If the land has already been leased or allocated to third parties, the state is obliged to consult the Ogiek and negotiate restitution or compensation.
In a landmark affirmation of indigenous rights, the court also ordered the Kenyan government to recognize the Ogiek community as an indigenous people which includes the full recognition of their language, culture, and spiritual practices. This recognition is at the core of the community as well as their historical dependent relationship with the Mau Forest.
The verdict reinforces the previous ones made in 2017,having the African Court find Kenya in breach of a number of articles of the African Charter, among others, the rights to non-discrimination, religion, property, culture, and the right to freely dispose of natural resources.
Nonetheless, the obstacles in front of it are severe as the government seems inclined to ignore the verdict. At a recent compliance hearing, it was revealed that progress has come to a standstill and that Kenya is attributing the challenges to logistics and administration. The Court stated that the government is obliged to ensure that the Ogiek will be consulted in a genuine way and be informed about any decisions about their land, which include development, conservation, and investment activities. Besides, they must take steps to ensure that no violation will occur in the future.
The decision marks a renewed push for justice in one of the most significant indigenous land rights cases in Africa.