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This is how Malawi used to be
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Map of Malawi showing the Nkhata Bay District where RIPPLE Africa is based
Click here to play the Reforestation video
Reforestation Video
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Carbon Offsetting Made Simple Video
Deforestation and Reforestation in Malawi, Africa
 
This is what much of Malawi looked like only 20 years ago This is what much of Malawi looks like now Planting tree seedlings in January 2007
 

We need to raise funds for...
• Community tree nurseries
• Motorcycles urgently needed!
• Bicycles for forest guards
 
Football pitch
 Every 10 minutes in Malawi, an area of forest the size of a football pitch is being cut down  
 
Aims of the Reforestation Project
•
To grow 4 million trees per year by establishing 400 community tree nurseries, each growing 10,000 trees per year to provide a sustainable source of wood for the future.
• To train, educate and empower the local communities to sustainably manage their environment to reduce poverty.
 
Reforestation Project Duration
Ongoing — commencing July 2006. We will be opening nurseries as funds become available.
 
Budget for Each Nursery

£1,000 pays for setting up and running each tree nursery for one year. This money pays for equipment, polythene tubes, seeds, training, monitoring and transport.
 
Deforestation and Land Degradation
 
Collecting firewood Selling wood on the roadside Wood for firing bricks Shifting cultivation (slash and burn) Bush burning
 

Malawi is a poor country and 80% of the people live in rural areas.Wood is a necessary part of everyday life, and also there is tremendous pressure to clear forests for agriculture. The present way of life is not sustainable. Wood has always been treated as a free resource, and vast areas of woodland have been cleared carelessly without any replanting for future generations. This deforestation also leads to soil erosion, land degradation and ultimately climate change which is and will have a devastating effect.

What are the problems?
•
Domestic firewood (only 2% of the population have access to mains electricity — just making a cup of tea uses several logs — and deforestation is worst near the main towns)
•
Selling firewood (wood is sold to areas where all the trees have been cut down)
•
Brick burning (to fire kilns to make bricks)
•
Shifting cultivation (when the soil is exhausted, virgin forest is cleared for new farmland — this deforestation has had drastic effects on the environment)
•
Bush burning (in the dry season, large areas of land are cleared by burning the bush)
•
Building
•
Tobacco drying (1 acre of tobacco requires up to 3 acres of woodland to cure the tobacco)
 
Reforestation and Natural Tree Planting Project
 
Tree seedlings in the nursery at Mwaya A training session at Mwaya The local community are keen to learn how to make compost heaps Using mbaulas instead of traditional fires to cook with reduces wood use by 50% A tree seedling being planted out
 

RIPPLE Africa has established 75 community tree nurseries and planted out 550,000 trees in January 2007.

The Reforestation Project
•
To establish 400 tree nurseries in 400 chiefs’ areas, each producing 10,000-12,000 tree seedlings per year. This will give a total of 4 million trees per year.
•
To carry out regular training and monitoring with all Forest Guards, Traditional Authorities, Chiefs and local Village Development Committees.
•
To organise localised education programmes for all local communities and schools, illustrating the problems of deforestation and how reforestation will lead to conservation and better agricultural practices.
•
To set up localised projects to produce and distribute mbaulas (fuel-efficient wood burning cookers).
•
Initially, there would be an emphasis on planting quick growing trees that do not destroy the soil. These trees could be used for firewood, brick burning and building in 4-5 years. From Year 2 onwards, there would be a greater emphasis on growing indigenous trees, fruit trees and agroforestry trees.
 
Reforestation Project Beneficiaries
The project beneficiaries will be all members of the community, including Traditional Authorities, Chiefs, men, women and young people in the district, through the planting of trees and environmental education programmes. With the local people managing their environment, this project will significantly contribute towards reducing poverty.
 
Reforestation Project Goal
The overall goal of this project is to preserve the existing natural trees and replace the large number of indigenous trees that have already been felled in the Nkhata Bay District. This will be achieved by planting large numbers of trees which will provide sufficient wood for future activities, i.e. cooking, brick burning, etc. The project will only work with the help and cooperation of the Chiefs and their local communities, and an ongoing training and education programme will be maintained to promote sustainable use of the natural resources for the future. This programme will greatly benefit women in the area as they will be encouraged to work with and learn about tree nurseries, mbaula (fuel-efficient wood burning cooker) production, etc.They will also ultimately benefit from abundant supplies of sustainable locally sourced wood. In addition, agriculture in the area will benefit from the use of agroforestry trees which will help to improve the soil fertility.
 
The future - tree seedlings being grown for planting out during the rainy season
 
Activities
• Meet all Traditional Authorities, Chiefs, and Forest Guards in the target area.
• Awareness training about deforestation, tree nursery training, compost training, etc.
• Supply of basic tree nursery equipment, polythene tubes and seeds.
• Establishment of tree nurseries.
• Setting up mbaula (fuel-efficient wood burning cooker) projects in various areas.
• Monitoring of tree nurseries and localised training.
• Helping to plan tree planting programme.
• Tree planting.
• Training and caring for the newly planted seedlings.
 
Monitoring and Evaluation
All activities shall be monitored and evaluated by RIPPLE Africa, Forestry Guards, the local communities and all other stakeholders.
 
Conclusion
This project is designed to produce maximum results. The vast majority of the money will be used in the field for equipment and seeds, together with training and monitoring. The main office costs are kept to a minimum. Managers of the project will be chosen on the basis of ability and a real passion for improving the environment in the Nkhata Bay District. We are confident that this reforestation project in Malawi, Africa, will have major and long-lasting benefits for the rural area of Nkhata Bay District, and that it will make a major contribution to poverty reduction.
 
Project Partners
We're very grateful to everybody who has contributed towards this project, particularly Restore UK and also Earth Restoration Service who are continuing to support us. We're also being supported by Eco-Libris, who have set up a website to raise money to plant trees from people who balance out the books they buy — "Every book you read was once a tree. Now you can plant a tree for every book you read."
 
Restore UK logo   Eco-Libris logo
 
RIPPLE Africa — Downloadable PDFs
 
Funding application brochure for the Reforestation and Natural Tree Conservation Project

Funding Application Brochure (PDF)
File size: 224KB

This is a four-page funding application brochure giving the information presented on this web page. Click on the picture on the left or click here to download this PDF document.
 
Poster for the Reforestation and Natural Tree Conservation Project

Reforestation Project Poster (PDF)
File size: 302KB

This poster can be printed for display on your noticeboard. Click on the picture on the left or click here to download this PDF document.
 
First page of the 'Malawi is Dying' leaflet Second page of the 'Malawi is Dying' leaflet

'Malawi is Dying' Leaflet (PDF)
File Size: 218KB

This is a double-sided leaflet about deforestation, RIPPLE Africa's reforestation and natural tree conservation project. Click on either of the pictures on the left or click here to download this PDF document.
 
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Company Registration No. 04823686 • UK Registered Charity No. 1103256