Germany’s Federal Minister for Economic Cooperation and Development Gerd Müller has commended Chilu community in Nkhoma, Lilongwe, for restoring forests through the innovation Farmer Managed Natural Regeneration (FMNR).
Before tackling the issue of climate change, which he said needs concerted efforts from all stakeholders, Müller said the community’s hard work was visible in the green crops in their gardens. He said: “Wherever I have passed in your village, the maize looks green and it is a sign of the great efforts you have put in, especially the women we have seen working.”
Welcoming the minister and German Ambassador Jürgen Borsch who had accompanied him, group village head Chilu said his community had adopted FMNR introduced by World Vision Malawi (WVM) as one way of restoring forests and ensuring that they preserve low-lying areas from soil erosion. “Three years ago there was no forest here. All the trees you see had been cut down for charcoal and firewood,” said Chilu, adding that things changed with the adoption of FMNR. “Since then, we have been taking care of the stems that remained and today, the forest is on its way to restoration. We hope to start harvesting timber soon on top of the firewood our women are getting at the moment,” he said.
FMNR is a low-cost land restoration technique used to combat poverty and hunger among poor subsistence farmers by increasing food and timber production and resilience to climate change effect. In practice, FMNR involves the systematic regrowth and management of trees and shrubs from felled tree stumps, sprouting root systems or seeds. The regrown trees and shrubs – integrated into crops and grazing pastures – help restore soil structure and fertility, inhibit erosion and soil moisture evaporation, rehabilitate springs and the water.
In her remarks, WVM’s Hazel Nyathi thanked the people of Germany for partnering with WVM in various interventions in Malawi and across the region. She said “Every year, 29 tonnes of soil are lost per hectare due to soil erosion. We are happy that communities like these can stand up to say that things are changing courtesy of low cost community driven innovations like FMNR.”
To date, WVM had implemented the innovation in all its 32 area programmes across 20 districts in Malawi with 3 291ha of land under FMNR.
(Source: The Nation, 9th January 2019)