Climate change interventions impress British minister
United Kingdom’s (UK) Minister of Energy, Clean Growth and Climate Change Annemarie Trevelyan has expressed satisfaction with climate change interventions being implemented in the country.
Trevelyan expressed the sentiments in an interview yesterday on the sidelines of her visit to communities in Balaka District benefiting from the Promoting Sustainable Partnerships for Empowered Resilience (Prosper) project.
During the visit, she saw elements of climate smart agriculture involving water pump irrigation, land restoration and village savings and loans groups.
Trevelyan described her visit as an absolute pleasure as she got a clear understanding of how communities are adapting to climate change through the supported initiatives which is impressive.
She said: “It has been fantastic to understand how far communities have been able to come and get better use of their land, to be able to get to be adapted to the change in climate.
“I am really proud to see the work the UK and all those who work with us have been really able to get the best use of what is clearly fertile territories.”
In a separate interview, World Food Programme (WFP) country director Paul Turnbull, described the project as unique on the basis that it has a community aspect as well as household development aspect.
“It has also benefitted communities economically because they have got more choices of food to grow and more types of food to sell and they are able to get higher prices for these foods, especially fruits and vegetables,” he said.
On his part, Balaka district commissioner (DC) Macleod Kadammanja also praised the interventions as they have managed to alleviate poverty in the area.
“You will understand that farmers had challenges having equipment they could use for irrigation. But now, they have modern technology, including water tanks and facilities,” he said.
Trevelyan, who is the UK’s international champion for adaptation and resilience for COP26, is currently on a four-day visit to Malawi where her trip is expected to help strengthen ties between the UK and Malawi.
