Women rangers in Malawi
By Kondwani Magombo, MANA
Government is planning to recruit 300 game rangers to help in reinforcing laws to protect the country’s Forest Reserves and Wildlife from degradation due to wanton cutting down of trees for charcoal burning.
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Minister of Forestry and Natural Resources, Nancy Tembo disclosed this on Monday in Mangochi when she toured Phirilongwe Forest Reserve in the area of Senior Chief Mponda to familiarize herself with environmental degradation caused by human activities taking place there.
She bemoaned the rate of degradation at the forest reserve and took cognizance that it is due to understaffing of game rangers to reinforce law around Phirilongwe.
She thus pledged recruit more rangers to patrol the forest and that that the 300 targeted are just a start as every year the Ministry will be employing more.
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“We are now taking the issue of environmental conservation and protection seriously,” Tembo said, observing that the charcoal burning business was being influenced by “some bad apples that are colluding with the charcoal burners to circumvent the law”.
Tembo condemned the syndicate, saying government would ensure that the said cycle was broken and that culprits are brought to book.
The Minister disclosed that Phirilongwe was amongst some forest reserves in eight countries in the world listed to benefit from UN and World Bank’s Landscape Restoration Programme, which would commence in due course.
She assured people around Phirilongwe that the UN and World Bank Program would have a component aimed at empowering them to improve their economic status.
Much needed patrols
“The project will be implemented through FAO and communities will be engaged in economic activities such as tree planting and bee keeping.
“We are sure that these activities will empower the people and distract them from venturing into charcoal burning,” she said.
Mangochi South-West Member of Parliament, Shadreck Namalomba hailed government for its commitement to protect forest and wildlife and he promised to sensitize his constituents to refrain from the careless cutting down trees in the forest reserve.
Namalomba noted the alternative economic activities such as the bee farming shall divert the people from turning to charcoal burning and appealed to government to find other deliberate means to empower the people in the area economically.
Phirilongwe Forest Reserve was first gazetted in 1924 as a protected area and it has a total estimated area of 16,121 hectares — commonly populated with Miombo woodland, according to Mangochi District Forestry Officer, Leonard Kamangadazi.
The Forest is situated on the South Western side of Mangochi District, stretching, from Chimvuu in Senior Chief Nankumba area to Bwanje in Ntcheu and it borders with Balaka District in the southern part.
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