Stubbornness and lack of genuine interest in environmental management has earned people of Chimpikiti and surrounding villages of<\/p>\n
Traditional Authority Kalembo in Balaka more than what they ever imagined.<\/p>\n
They saw it coming but paid no attention.<\/p>\n
They watched a natural drainage transforming into a stream and later into a full river. And they helped it do so.<\/p>\n
And it began spitting its anger on people and their property, rendering them a charity case.<\/p>\n
Kaweya Junior Primary school which had its classes washed away was one of its first victims.<\/p>\n
Its pupils stayed sometime without learning for a good part of that rainy season two years ago.<\/p>\n
\u201cPeople of this area are very stubborn. Anyone who warned them about this issue was deemed violating their human rights because they were cultivating on their land,\u201d recalls Maxwell Kalele, Chairperson for Kalembo Area Extension Community Committee.<\/p>\n
Kalele tells that the man-made disaster began five years ago when people began cultivating on the land that separated Katapasya (the tributary) and Nkasi (the main river).<\/p>\n
Over the years, the course of Nkasi River kept changing as Katapasya tributary grew bigger until the main river course completely changed.<\/p>\n
\u201cEven though people were advised against cultivating on the land and plant trees along the river banks instead, they continued to cultivate.<\/p>\n
\u201cGradually, the river began to change its course. Every rainy season, the tributary grew and has now become a big destructive river,\u201d he explains.<\/p>\n
Kalele adds that the river grows every rainy season leaving dangerous galleys and eating up the land.<\/p>\n
The sight of the newly-formed Katapasa river is so scary. It appears Namalomba Community Day Secondary School (CDSS) is also at risk of being eaten up by the \u2018man-made\u2019 river.<\/p>\n
The modern school is less than 100 metres away from the river; and should nothing be done about the situation, the school is standing in the way of trouble.<\/p>\n
Group Village Head Chimpikiti echoes Kalele\u2019s observation adding that he has failed as a traditional leader to use his influence to prevent environmental degradat ion in the area.<\/p>\n
\u201cMany people are resisting change. When we make an effort to plant trees along the river banks to prevent more damage, they go there at night and uproot them,\u201d he laments.<\/p>\n
Chimpikiti further notes that people are using human rights as their weapon to frustrate efforts by the Village and Area Development Committees.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have been planting reeds and bamboos but they have all been destroyed. It appears these human rights have somehow been misunderstood. I\u2019m afraid that is diluting powers of traditional leaders,\u201d says Chimpikiti, sounding very frustrated.<\/p>\n
He also does not hide the fact that the area is now feeling the pinch of environmental degradation saying many people died while others lost their hard earned property in last rainy season\u2019s floods.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe also lost school structures of Kaweya Primary two years ago. The school was relocated but we still need lots of money to have structures to make it a proper school.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf we don\u2019t change, we are likely to lose our beautiful Namalomba CDSS all this because of a few selfish people,\u201d says the vividly emotive GVH.<\/p>\n
Chimpikiti now demands immediate government intervention to help save the situation.<\/p>\n
Parliamentarian for Balaka Central East, Yaumi Mpaweni says it is expensive to deal with the effects of environmental degradation than it is to spend on preventive measures.<\/p>\n
He cites the example of Kaweya Primary school which was washed away two years ago but now has a few classes at its relocation place.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe will have to use Local Development Fund (LDF) money to build school blocks and teachers\u2019 houses. If people had listened, we would have used these funds elsewhere but it seems we aren\u2019t making progress,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n
Executive Director for Centre for Environmental Policy and Advocacy (Cepa) William Chadza says the case of the creation of Katapasa River which has caused mayhem and is likely to cause more would have been prevented if the country put its efforts towards containing environmental degradation.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe most critical aspect which needs to change as soon as possible is the fact that Malawi is more of a responsive nation than that of preventive,\u201d he observes.<\/p>\n
Chadza adds that it is pleasing to note that there is progress and the launch of National Disaster Risk Management Policy is enough evidence.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is high time people were taught about their role in environmental degradation prevention. That way we wouldn\u2019t be busy with fire fighting when disaster strikes or we may prevent disaster altogether,\u201d he says<\/p>\n
Speaking on the sidelines of this year\u2019s World Environment Day (WED) commemorated on June 5, 2015 at Namalomba school ground in Balaka,<\/p>\n
Minister of Natural Resources, Energy and Mining, Bright Msaka admitted that Malawi is in danger because it has not paid the required attention to environmental management for many years.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have experienced the worst floods ever in the history of the country because our environment is degraded. The case of Katapasya growing into a big destructive river is no exception,\u201d he observed.<\/p>\n
Msaka also said if the current generation continues to be careless, the earth will not be a better place for the next generation.<\/p>\n
\u201cGod created the environment for us to survive in it. Trees protect our rivers and would save this situation here at Namalomba but look at what people are doing. They are cutting them down for charcoal production,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Msaka suggested that chiefs need to be empowered so that people should be responsible for environment management at local level.<\/p>\n
The Malawi State of Environment and Outlook report of 2010 notes that there is evidence that forestry resources are degrading at a fast rate of 2.5 per cent per year.<\/p>\n
The report says the main cause of this is agricultural expansion caused by rapid population growth.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn addressing environmental degradation, a pertinent consideration is the organisation of the economy, especially the agricultural sector.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is a sector dominated by the small scale sub-sector operations without access to modern means and techniques of production which puts the environment at risk. At the same time makes it difficult to enforce environmental laws and regulations,\u201d reads part of the report.<\/p>\n
According to the report, in Malawi, the distribution of employment shows that in 2008, 84 per cent of the employed (aged 15 years and above) were engaged in agriculture, forestry and fishing indicating direct dependence on natural resources.<\/p>\n
Goal seven of the United Nations Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) is to ensure environmental sustainability by this year (2015).<\/p>\n
Among other targets, the country is supposed to integrate the principles of sustainable development into the country policies and programmes and reverse loss of environment resources .<\/p>\n
According to the report, the underlying causes of environmental degradation are high population density, and dependence on subsistence agricultural production in the absence of other economic opportunities.<\/p>\n
The national theme for this year\u2019s WED commemorations was \u2018Prevent man-made disasters. Use natural resources sustainably\u2019.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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