District Commissioner (DC) for Chitipa McMillan Magomero has asked communities in the district to take the World Bank funded, Climate Smart Public Works Programme (CSPWP) seriously in order to preserve the environment.

Speaking during the disbursement of wages to participants on Wednesday, who have worked for a first period of 24 days, Magomero said that the programme will help to bring back the environment in the district, which was degraded due to unnecessary cutting down of trees, as well as cultivation along the river banks.

‘‘This programme is very important for communities in Chitipa because it will help control the runoff water, and to protect the environment in general, as, due to the mountainous topography of the district we have many farmers who cultivate down the hill, but they do not harvest bumper yields due to extensive run off of the water.’’

‘‘As such, I am urging communities to take the programme seriously in order for us to improve on crop production, said Magomero.

Through the programme, which is a sub-component of the Social Support for Resilient Livelihoods Project (SSRLP), and is being implemented by local councils with the support of the National Local Government Finance Committee, communities in Chitipa are creating assets such as reclaimed gullies, contour ridging, river bank protection as well as swale construction.

In recent years, communities in Chitipa have been experiencing effects of climate change such as flooding, a development which affects heavily communities living down the stream in Karonga.

In his remarks, Group Village Headman Chipwela commended the government for the initiative, saying that apart from restoring the environment, wages will help participants to improve their livelihood.

‘‘This programme is empowering us economically because wages that we are receiving will help us to buy food, as well as fertilizer for irrigation farming. As such I am advising my subordinates to use the money for intended purposes’’, said Chipwela.

According to the acting district liaison officer for Chitipa Jame Gubudu, the district has 14 catchment areas where the programme is implemented, and beneficiaries are working for a period of 12 days per month.

Climate Smart Public Works Programme, which is an acceleration of the pilot enhanced public works programme, is being implemented in all the districts, for a period of five years running from July 2020 to June 2025, and Its primary objective is to improve household resilience to shocks, to increase the pact on household-level incomes and food security, among others.