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Community in Nsanje Adopt Beekeeping as a Sustainable Alternative to Deforesting Matandwe Forest Reserve
Since the Shire River Transformation Program began in 2022, 20 people have switched from selling charcoal to beekeeping. In the Nsanje district, Matandwe Forest Reserve was established in 1931.
Malawi: The Matandwe Forest Reserve, located in the Senior Chief Tengani area of the Nsanje district, has deteriorated over the years as a result of people's wanton cutting down of trees for fuel and income, writes Moses Thole.
As a result, rare natural trees in the forest like the M'bawa, Tsanya, Kagolo, and Mfula were in danger of going extinct.
However, communities near the forest are switching from cutting down trees to keeping and selling bees for profit thanks to the Shire Valley Transformation Program, which is implementing a beekeeping Project there with funding from the World Bank.
In an interview with AfricaBrief, Emmanuel Banda, the chairperson of the M'thumba Bee Keeping Club, claimed that as a result of the project, residents have stopped felling trees for firewood and charcoal production.
"In the past, people relied on the forest for their survival because they did not engage in any income-generating activities," he said. You would discover that from January to December, people's only source of daily sustenance was the forest. Some community members even had to sell charcoal and timber to cover their children's school expenses. Deforestation, however, resulted from the removal of these trees for either charcoal or timber,” he said.
Banda urged community members to start bee farming because he claimed it is more lucrative than the charcoal industry. However, he has bemoaned the lack of markets in the area and has urged the government and other stakeholders to assist the farmers in finding markets outside the district.
The number of people who depend on the forest as a source of income has decreased, according to Lewis Tobias, a member of the community, since the project started.
“The environment is impacted by deforestation in terms of rainfall patterns, and our district is vulnerable to natural disasters like drought and floods, in part because of soil erosion and river siltation,” he said.
He continued by saying that since he stopped cutting down trees and began his beekeeping business, he has been able to purchase three goats, and a bicycle, and is prepared to construct a home by 2023.
Another resident of the community claimed that the Shire Valley Transformation Program had made her happier by removing her family's reliance on the Matandwe forest and replacing it with a busy beekeeping business.
Beekeeping is one of the initiatives that, in Noel Moyo's opinion, has so far helped to stop deforestation in Matandwe Forest, according to Nsanje District Forestry Officer Noel Moyo.
He said that beekeeping is a sustainable forest management initiative that can support livelihoods and enhance human nutrition.
Public Relations Officer for Shire Valley Transformation Programme Alice Kaunda encouraged the club to work hard on the project as it is a source of income, food, and medicine in addition to being a part of the environment when speaking to AfricaBrief about the importance of the programme to the management of the forest.
Since the Shire River Transformation Program began in 2022, 20 people have switched from selling charcoal to beekeeping. In the Nsanje district, Matandwe Forest Reserve was established in 1931.