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Zomba Chief's Reforestation Efforts at Nkholonje Hill Bear Fruit
Rabson Mandala is hailed a hero for implementing a successful reforestation program to combat deforestation in Zomba-Mathews Mwantani.
Malawi-Rabson Mandala, one of the chiefs under Traditional Authority Chikowi in Zomba, has earned hero status after implementing a reforestation program to counteract severe deforestation at Nkholonje Hill with his own village and neighbouring communities such as Ngomo and Jali-pelusi, writes Mathews Mwantani.
The hill was mostly covered with indigenous trees and provided valuable resources such as timber, charcoal, and traditional medicines to the surrounding villages.
However, until around 2014, the villagers were exploiting the resources, leading to drought and other natural disasters due to the lack of vegetation cover.
In 2015, Chief Mandala, along with fellow chiefs surrounding Nkholonje Hill, implemented by-laws to protect the remaining trees from further deforestation.
According to one of the laws, individuals caught cutting down trees would be fined K5,000 per tree or face police action.
Additionally, the chiefs established a 15-member committee tasked with safeguarding the forest and educating the community on the negative effects of deforestation.
According to Chief Mandala in an interview with AfricaBrief, “As you can see, we live in swampy areas surrounded by hills, I was concerned with how the villagers were cutting down trees; leaving bare hills. This led to the destruction of our rivers, roads, and crops by running water from the bare hills. I met with my fellow chiefs and decided that we needed to do something to stop the wanton cutting down of trees.”
“After our meeting where we came up with the by-laws, to ensure re-afforestation, I addressed the village on the dangers of deforestation. At the meeting, we also set up a committee that would oversee the reforestation programme. The committee has been effective since that time up to now, as you can see now the hill is filled with indigenous trees,” Mandala added.
One of the youth members of the committee, Patrick Tembo, applauded the effort that chief Mandala put in place to make sure that the forest is not destroyed again.
Patrick Tembo, a youth member of the committee, shared his passion for the environment and his reasons for joining the committee, stating, "My parents always talked about how life was easier here back then when the environment was not destroyed, and that gave me the passion for the environment. So when the chief was selecting the committee members, I put myself up for nomination so as to be a part of the group that would bring back the hill’s lost glory."
He also mentioned how reforestation has helped the community, saying, "The reforestation has really helped the villagers as most of them are engaged in bee farming in the forest to help them financially. As a committee, we are responsible for making firebreaks during the summer and clearing weeds during the rainy season. We also make sure that no one is cutting down trees carelessly."
Lestina Adam, another member of Mandala village, expressed how the reforestation has benefited women, stating, "If you saw how bare the hill looked before, you wouldn’t believe it is the same hill you see today. In fact, when the chief told us about his plans, some people laughed. But here we are: We have replanted the trees, and now women no longer struggle for firewood. We also have mushrooms all over the forest, which we couldn’t find in the past few years."
Despite their success in reforestation, Chief Mandala and the committee still face challenges such as people's refusal to participate in protecting the forest, a lack of proper safety tools, and inadequate training in bee farming.
The chief remains optimistic that organizations will come in to support them with the necessary skills.