By Salome Gangire

Neno, October 25, Mana: Neno District Council through the Malawi Watershed Services Improvement Project (MWASIP) has provided K45, 207, 855 to community members in Neno District for their environmental conservation efforts to uplift their livelihood.

Speaking during the cheque handover ceremony to Wamkulumazi Catchment Management Committee (CMC) held at Chawe Clinic Ground, Principal Agriculture Training Officer in the Department of Agriculture Extension Services, Bonface Kautale said the money is part of   Community Environment Conservation Fund (CECF) given to communities upon successful implementation of Sustainable Land Management (SLM) practices in their catchment areas.

He said the funds are provided under the Land restoration component, as incentives to project participants that have done well in sustainable land management practices to uplift their livelihood through small-scale business whilst they are implementing the project activities so that they do not harm the environment.

 “CECF is one of the funds deliberately set aside as an encouragement to be awarded to communities participating in MWASIP activities. It operates on Performance Based Grant basis. The more is achieved, the more is rewarded,” Kautale said.

He added that physical verification is done by Independent Verification Agent (IVA) through measurements of pieces of land area under different landscape restoration interventions by Village Natural Resources Management Committee (VNRMCs), as a basis for calculating their achievement levels on the area under SLM activities, which is the basis for calculating CECF.

Kautale said the money is used in form of revolving fund to be providing micro-credit to community members involved in the VLAP activities under MWASIP, and is accessible to members within the catchment area that are involved in the landscape restoration programs.

Mkulumadzi CMC Chairperson Jackson Yona thanked MWASIP for transforming the landscape in their area, saying now communities have adopted landscape management practices, which apart from transforming the environment, have led to communities harvesting more.

He said with CECF funds, communities are now engaging in businesses that do not harm the environment.

Councillor for Chilimbondo Ward, who is also Vice Council Chairperson for Neno District Council, Montfort Bwanali thanked MWASIP for CECF funds which he said has economically empowered the communities working in the project as they are engaged in various small scale business to uplift their lives.

He said the project has reduced incidences of people cutting down trees, as they did not have capital to venture into meaningful businesses.

Bwanali asked the beneficiaries to jealously guard against misuse of the facility by making sure that when a member gets the loan they should follow up so that all members should benefit too.

MWASIP has this far disbursed K292, 401, 537.60 CECF fund to 2,501 project participants in Neno District.