Garissa Environmentalist Abdikadir Aden Declared a Hero by National Heroes Council

NAIROBI – The National Heroes Council has officially awarded the Certificate of Declaration of Hero to Abdikadir Aden Hassan HSC on Friday in Nairobi. The Certificates are part of the National Heroes recognition which is officially signed by President Dr.William Ruto.

Heroes are also Gazetted in the Kenya gazette and also receive a medal with their details, citation, and their profiles for the year 2024 being documented in a booklet for the Kenya National Archives.

Each year, the National Heroes Council identifies Kenyans from diverse backgrounds to be feted for their exemplary work and contributions to nation building.

For Garissa County this year, the National Heroes Council has recognized Mr. Abdikadir Aden Hassan, HSC. Abdikadir is the Chief Executive Officer and Founder  of Garissa Million Trees. He was feted for his exemplary contributions in championing environmental conservation in the semi-arid Northern Kenya.

He is aims to produce and grow 100 million trees in 6 (six) dryland counties. He has empowered women and youth with knowledge on climate change action. He has been recognized as an Eco-warrior of Africa by the Voice of America (VOA) last year. President Dr. William Ruto commended Mr. Abdikadir for his dedication to landscape restoration in Garissa County, aligning with Kenya’s ambitious 15 Billion Trees initiative and one of the Agendas of Kenya Kwanza Administration.

“Dryland Counties constitue almost 50% of 47 counties of Kenya and always are affected by the changes in Climate. We are pastoralists and our vegetation cover is very low. This is the reason why I am driving the Agenda of greening the North Eastern Region of Kenya” he told Kulan Post.

In they year 2015, Abdikadir received the Queen’s Young Leaders award from Her Late Majesty Queen of England, Queen Elizabeth II in Buckingham Palace in London for promoting youth development work in Conservation in the Commonwealth.

Mr. Abdikadir works with young people to educate and engage them on the issue of climate change.

“It is a great honour and privilege to be a Shujaa and I will continue championing Greening of Northern Kenya so that we are able to combat effects of Climate Change,” he said.

Mr.Abdikadir is presented with his Medal of Honour by the National Heroes Council CEO Charles Wambia during this year’s Mashujaa Day National Celebrations at Kwale County. Photo/ Courtesy 

His green initiatives have had a positive effect on his community, creating job opportunities in areas such as environmental protection and conservation.

Abdikadir’s motto is planting trees to transform lives. He has over 400,000 seedlings in his nursery sites in Garissa town.

The National Heroes Council was enacted to create a formal process for identifying and celebrating the nation’s heroes.

The Act outlines 14 key functional areas for heroism, including liberation struggles, spiritual leadership, indigenous knowledge, cultural values and practices, arts, sports, scholarship, professionalism, research, peace-making, entrepreneurship, philanthropy, human rights, environmental conservation, and national cohesion and integration.

Potential nominees are those exhibiting extraordinary qualities such as patriotism, selflessness, courage, perseverance, integrity, commitment, expertise, and innovation.

Mr.Abdikadir in one of his tree nurseries in Garissa. Photo/ Courtesy

The recognition seeks to inspire current and future generations by celebrating these exceptional individuals and their legacies.