Lake Malawi pollution worries minister

Malawi Minister of Tourism and Culture Rachel Mazombwe Zulu has bemoaned the tendency of fishers not building proper toilets in their fishing villages and instead using the lake to relieve themselves, saying this practice can lead to a bilhazia outbreak.

Addressing the media after launching the 2013 National Tourism Month at Sunbird Livingstonia Beach in Salima, Zulu said there was a urgent need to build toilets in all fishing villages to preserve the quality of water in Lake Malawi so that tourists do not complain once they visit the country.

“I visited the Nguwo fishing village and what I have seen is not inspiring at all. There are no proper toilets and this will lead to many people using the lake to relieve themselves. If this trend continues, one day we may have a bilharzia outbreak which will force tourists to stop visiting the lakeshore resorts for fear of the disease,” said Zulu.

She said government will soon engage the fishers in constructing toilets in the villages so that the problem is sorted once and for all.

Zulu said that if properly managed, water-related tourism can bring benefits to the nation and local communities and support water preservation.

“Clean accessible water is vital to tourism because most of the sectors business, from hotels, restaurants to leisure facilities depend on clean water for them to function to their optimal levels,” said Zulu.

Principal secretary for Tourism Tressa Senzani agreed with Zulu that the problem of using the lake as a toilet if left unchecked, has the potential to destroy the reputation of Lake Malawi among tourists in the world.

“We need to find a lasting solution to the problem of lack of toilets in villages along the lake because if we are not careful, one day we will lose the reputation of our beautiful lake if bilhazia breaks out. My humble plea to those residing along the shores of lake Malawi is to build toilets and use them instead of depeneding on the lake,” said Senzani.

Salima district commissioner Charles Kalemba said they have already started sensitising people along the lake not to use it as a toilet because it is to their own good to preserve the quality of water in Lake Malawi.

“We have plans already to help the fishermen at Nguwo fishing village to build proper toilets because we do not want tourists to start complaining that we are filing to preserve the quality of our lake,” said Kalemba.

Lake Malawi is home to more species of fish than any other body of freshwater in the world.

In addition to being of huge interest to the planet on an ecological and environmental basis, Lake Malawi’s fish population provides a major source of protein to the Malawian people, and over 300 000 people in the country rely on catching or trading fish as part or all of their primary income.

The theme for this year’s tourism month is Tourism and Water; Protecting Our Common Future.