THE SAD UNTOLD STORY OF THE REMARKABLE CHIKANGAWA FOREST

viphya  plantations commonly known as Chikangawa  forest was once a remarkable site full of breathtaking trees that covered a mass land. 

Beautiful pine trees

Viphya was first set up and planted by the British and then maintained by the life-president at the time, Dr Hastings Banda - Malawi’s first President after independence from the British. Pine was planted to produce paper pulp as well as some Eucalypts, but the paper pulp project was abandoned after there were serious environmental concerns. The pine was grown for timber instead. Much of the pine is over-mature and has now been largely harvested. There are only a few key commercial players in the whole area.

Viphya was one of the largest man-made forests in Southern Africa and has a considerable number of indigenous and foreign species planted in it. There are many Eucalypts planted here and across Malawi. It’s an excellent source of timber and fuel in a country where the large majority of the population rely on charcoal and firewood for their household energy needs timber made from pine trees

    chikangawa roadside 

 

timber made from pine trees

In 1959/1960 exotic soft wood was planted with the hopes of making the northern part of the country self-sufficient in construction timber. In 1964, after Malawi gained independence, the country’s first president, Dr Hastings Kamuzu Banda, had a vision of the Southern African nation making its own paper. However, following feasibility studies, the project was abandoned, and under the one-party system from 1964 to 1994 the largest man-made forest in Africa at the time remained intact and well-maintained.

The introduction of a multi-party government in 1994 saw the privatisation of the state-owned entity. A Kenyan multinational bought into the company and was given a concession to manage 20 000 hectares. The government owned the remaining 33 000 hectares and concessions were given to smaller local companies as well as individuals to harvest and replant, with the idea that the revenue would maintain the forest. Government was left with a mere 9196 hectares to manage.

bare land of chikangawa

(picture credited to nation online)

The forest has been degraded in such way that, excess cutting of timber, careless bush fires has read to the tremendous degradation of the forest. leaving the forest bare with scars of humps of cut trees.