Wovwe Water Users Association chairperson Phanga Kaonga has appealed for the rehabilitation of Wovwe Irrigation Scheme which suffered destruction due to heavy rains in the 2024/25 growing season.
He said this on Thursday at Chihepusha during an open day which the International Committee for the Development of Peoples (CISP) conducted in collaboration with Save the Children to showcase what the two organisations are implementing in the area under Sustainable Malawian Agriculture To Enhance Resilience To Climate Change (Smart) project.
Said Kaonga: “The community relies on this scheme to generate income. However, heavy rains damaged the head works.
“This is why we appeal to stakeholders for the scheme’s urgent rehabilitation to enable farmers to go onto winter cropping.”
Kaonga said farmers produce rice not only for Karonga but the entire country.
On his part, group village head Mgulika, Traditional Authority Mwirang’ombe’s representative group village head Mgulika urged the community to desist from cutting down trees along Wovwe and Nyungwe rivers.
He said: “Heavy rains crippled part of the scheme. It needs urgent attention for farmers to grow rice.
“However, I ask people to take care of the environment to protect the two rivers.”
Karonga district director of agriculture services Yaz Nyirenda said the council will look into the requestt.
“We will see what we can do. We will also cast the net wide open to lobby from partners and stakeholders. However, let me agree with community leaders that we should take care of the environment to protect the rivers,” he said.
With funding from Agenzia Italiana Per La Cooperazione Allo Sviluppo, Committee for the Development of Peoples in collaboration with Save the Children is implementing Smart Climate project in the district.
