By Vincent Khonje
With new Tobacco Act now in place Malawi’s tobacco marketing and production regulation body, Tobacco Commission (TC), is strictly demanding that tobacco growers submit their afforestation plans before being registered.
The tobacco industry which the country relies most economically uses a lot of firewood to process a thing which has been blamed for loss of trees.
Speaking on Saturday when the commission planted and handed over 6000 tree seedlings to communities around Mphululu School at Mpofu in Traditional Authority Chilooko in Ntchisi, TC Kasungu division manager Alison Kambili said the regulatory body is serious in making sure tobacco farmers adhere to the new law.
”We are encouraging tobacco growers to be planting the trees and also to take care of them as part of adhering to what the law is saying. The new act requires that the commission registers only a grower who has submitted retains on what they are doing on afforestation,” said Kambili.
District Forestry Officer for Ntchisi John Masanda said the district wants to plant about 1,200 000 trees this year and thanked TC for the support to fulfill this task.
Masanda however urged TC to be tough on the enforcement the new law.
“TC should really make use of the tobacco act so that the issues about trees in the law should be adhered to. This will help in making sure trees are replenished,” said Masanda.
TA Chilooko also hailed TC for supporting communities in his area saying the commission has just shown the way and the people will only continue planting more trees.
“We are going to continue with tree planting in the northern part of Ntchisi as we want that by the end of five years we should restore the forests here,” said TA Chilooko.
TC division offices across the country conducted the tree planting exercise which is done every year as part of restocking trees and also as a corporate social responsibility.
The exercise follows the national tree planting exercise launch by President Peter Mutharika at Mkando in Mulanje.
