Community hails project to protect forest reserve
People in Senior Chief Tengani’s area in Nsanje District have commended the Shire Valley Transformation Programme (SVTP) for introducing beekeeping which is protecting Matandwe Forestry Reserve.
In an interview on Tuesday, Mnthumba Beekeeping Club chairperson Emmanuel Banda said through the project, community members have stopped cutting down trees for charcoal.
He said: “Previously, people relied on the forest for their livelihood as they were not involved in any income-generating activity.
“However, cutting down trees for charcoal production led to deforestation.”
Banda said beekeeping is more profitable than charcoal business, therefore, urged community members to start bee farming.
A community member James Piriminta said the number of people cutting down trees for charcoal and timber has declined since the project began.
“Deforestation affects the environment in terms of rainfall patterns. Nsanje is prone to natural disasters such as droughts and floods, partly due to deforestation which has led to soil erosion and siltation of rivers,” he said.
Nsanje district forestry officer Noel Moyo said bee farming is one of the initiatives that has reversed deforestation in Matandwe Forest.
“Beekeeping is a sustainable forest management approach that can sustain livelihoods and improve nutrition among people,” he said.
Ministry of Natural Resources and Climate Change chief forestry officer Titus Zulu encouraged the club to take care of the bees as it is a source of income, food, medicine and also part of the environment.
“We are doing everything to maintain the forest to support communities who depend on it,” he said.
The Shire Valley Transformation Programme is implementing the beekeeping project in the district with funding from the World Bank.
Matandwe Forest Reserve was gazetted in 1931.
