After planting over 125,000 trees across the country between 2013 and 2020, journalists in Malawi are pledging to continue with the mission of safeguarding the environment.
One of the champions of the exercise and former secretary general of the Blantyre Press Club (BPC), Simeon Shumba, says it is exciting that more trees have survived and that communities know their role in protecting the environment.
This comes as Malawi joins the rest of the world in commemorating World Environment Day under the theme of Land Restoration, Desertification Drought Resilience.
According to Shumba, through the club, they invested in traditional leaders and their subjects to ensure that they take the lead in conserving the environment, mitigating the impact of climate change and raising awareness to achieve land restoration and creating drought resilience.
“We planted trees in areas such as Nkhata Bay in the North, Dzalanyama Forest reserve in Lilongwe, Liwonde and Mandevu side in Machinga, Chiperoni hills in Zomba and Soche, Mudi as well as Kunthembwe in rural Malawi, and we believe we did our part in land restoration,” he said.
His comments also come as dry spells continue to affect most parts of Malawi this year, with 4.4 million Malawians in need of food aid.
President Dr Lazarus Chakwera declared a state of disaster in 23 of the country’s 28 districts, with a view of raising much needed help to feed over 2 million farming households affected by El Nino spell in March this year.
A visit to some of the areas where BPC planted trees reveals that some of the community members have also opened their woodlots as part of the campaign to protect the environment and reduce global warming.
Esnart Namagowa, 49, of Ndaje Village in Machinga District says eight years after planting trees in a nearby forest with BPC journalists with support from PUMA Energy, she established her own woodlot.
“I don’t have issues in finding firewood, and I also sell poles to villagers for their houses,” she said.
The United Nations says that by 2050, 75 percent of the world population will be affected by drought if nothing is done to reverse the current trend of climate change.
