Temwa Carbon Balance August 2024 Report
As a consequence of the climate crisis, Malawi is facing extreme weather patterns, including intense rains and extended droughts. For communities in Nkhata Bay North, this leads to soil erosion and crop failures, forcing many farmers to resort to deforestation for income.
Temwa Carbon Balance project offers organisations and individuals the opportunity to offset their CO2 emissions by supporting Temwa’s community-driven initiatives such as tree planting, sustainable farming, and the management of local natural resources.
Project Context and Aims:
Around 90% of households in Nkhata Bay North depend on smallholder subsistence farming, but are increasingly struggling to sustain themselves due to the impacts of climate change on agriculture. As a result, 58% of households in this area are currently living below the national poverty line.
High levels of poverty have driven many to use resources unsustainably and cause deforestation. This deforestation contributes to soil erosion, depletes water sources, and reduces agricultural productivity.
Temwa Carbon Balance aims to address these issues by empowering communities to sustainably manage their resources, diversify livelihoods, restore forests, prevent land degradation, and improve soil health.
Tree Planting Achievements in 2024:
2024 saw challenging conditions for our new tree seedlings, due to heatwaves, prolonged drought, high temperatures and flooding - all of which have been compounded by El Niño weather patterns. Despite this, 8,670 tree seedlings were planted in January, with further planting delayed due to high temperatures.
Over the following months, heatwaves eased and planting continued. By April, a total of 48,477 trees were planted out of the 53,500 seedlings that had been grown in Temwa and community nurseries. Temwa also purchased an additional 5,500 fruit tree seedlings: Our focus remains on planting fruit trees for their nutritional and economic value, making them less likely to be felled for firewood.
Sustaining these new trees and seedlings is also top priority in creating lasting change. In March, Temwa held two training sessions for the 23 individuals who established orchards, so that they can successfully manage their out-planted trees, resulting in a 90% survival rate for all of these fruit trees.
In total, Temwa Carbon Balance has supported the planting of 184,505 trees since its launch in 2020, which have the potential to balance 18,451 tonnes of CO2 over their 20 year life span.
Forest Friendly Livelihoods
The program emphasises a holistic approach, ensuring trees are protected and integrated into forest-friendly livelihoods. This means activities that supply income from forests, rather than resorting to deforestation for income. This includes beekeeping, wild mushroom harvesting and growing cash crops. For example, Patrick Phiri from Jembe Village was trained in beehive construction in 2023. He successfully produced five beehives and added one local beehive. He now anticipates harvesting approximately 100kgs of honey by the end of this year, valued at MWK450,000 (approx £200).
Stewardship of Natural Resources
Temwa Carbon Balance also engages communities to protect existing resources, including regular monitoring of protected forests. Recent reviews of Village Level Natural Resources Management Plans (VLNRMPs) highlighted both successes and areas for improvement. Strategies for improved implementation include selecting new committee members and conducting more frequent reviews.
Challenges and Lessons Learned:
The process of implementing effective measures against climate change is not always easy, but Temwa is committed to constantly evaluating and improving our processes.
For example, we found the prolonged heatwave posed significant challenges, particularly in seedling survival and transportation. To combat this, future plans include developing irrigation systems and raising seedlings closer to the planting sites.
Conclusion:
Thanks to all our donors, Temwa’s support is making significant strides in reforestation, sustainable farming, and climate resilience in Nkhata Bay North, Malawi. As a result, communities are able to benefit from diversified incomes and improved farming conditions, as we work our way towards a more sustainable future.
Read the full Temwa Carbon Balance 6-month report here
*As the trees planted are still in early stages of growth, this is an estimate of the amount of CO2 that the trees will balance over 20 years. The calculation takes into account potential factors reducing tree survival over time, such thinning, bush fires, plant diseases and felling. Once the trees reach adequate maturity, our carbon benefit assessment will be based both on current actual and long-term projected benefits
