Senior Chief Chowe of Mangochi District has expressed concern with vandalism of Liwonde National Park’s protective wire fence.
This follows reports that several sections of the wire fence, designed to prevent animals from entering nearby communities, have been damaged or removed.
In an interview on Thursday when Lilongwe Wildlife Trust launched a Wildlife Enforcement Project in Traditional Authority (T/A) Sitola in Machinga, Chowe, who is also Liwonde National Park liaison committee chairperson, said vandalism is a breach of security that poses a serious risk as it allows dangerous animals to venture outside the park.
“There is a big potential leading to dangerous animals such as elephants to encounter with communities, their crops and livestock,” he said.
On her part, Lilongwe Wildlife Trust campaign manager Samantha Nampuntha said through the project they aim to engage the communities to understand the National Parks and Wildlife Act and help protect the areas the African Parks are managing.
She said: “We want to remind the communities that the Act is not only for wildlife protection, but also for human protection.
“Among others, the project will also empower communities with startup capital and encourage them to venture into village savings and loans groups to tackle poverty.”
Meanwhile, T/A Sitola has expressed commitment to work with the park authorities in raising awareness on the dangers of vandalising the fence.
With funding from the United States Agency for International Development, the five years project is being implemented in collaboration with the Department of National Parks and Wild life, African Parks and Feed the Future at Nkhotakota Wildlife Reserve, Majete Wildlife Reserve, Liwonde National Park and Mangochi Forest Reserve.
