LILONGWE-(MaraviPost)-Lilongwe City Council (LCC) plans to establish a state-of-the-art tree nursery that will produce 10 million seedlings from 2026 to 2028.
The initiative aims at restoring the city’s green cover and curb environmental degradation.
Lilongwe City Mayor Councillor Alex Banda told Association of Environmental Journalists (AEJ) on Friday, October 30 that the initiative will provide four million seedlings for the city and six million for the wider Lilongwe district in two years.
The Mayor suggested that there is need for a more coordinated approach to environmental management in urban expansion, pressure on open spaces, loss of vegetation, dust pollution, soil erosion and degradation of sensitive ecosystems reinforcement.
Banda disclosed that the city currently produces fewer than 100,000 seedlings annually, which is not sufficient to meet the scale of the ambition for Lilongwe City and the surrounding areas.
The mayor therefore called upon partners to sponsor seedling production, provide polythene tubes, supply mature seedlings, support the establishment of fruit trees in primary schools or adopt designated areas for tree planting and maintenance.
Echoing the same, the Council Chief Executive Officer Clement Stambuli added that the initiative will improve the environment of the city and Lilongwe.
Stambuli however noted that the city has lost trees to construction and development.
Stambuli called upon the public not only to plant trees but also to take care of them to restore the city’s lost glory.
In welcoming the initiative, AEJ representative Grace Kapatuka assured the council of the grouping’s zeal and ability to advance the initiative’s agenda.
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