NCIC plants 1 500 trees in Karonga

National Construction Industry Council (NCIC) has called on all players in the construction industry to take a leading role in planting trees and conserving the environment.

The council’s Northern Region senior industry liaison officer Engineer Jeremia Nkhowani made the call on Wednesday at Chipeta Primary School in Karonga District where they planted 1 500 seedlings of different species.

He said as an industry that mainly uses tree products such as timbers and logs, its players should show interest in planting trees.

“One of our mandates is to protect the environment. So, planting trees is one way of doing it,” said Nkhowani.

Karonga district assistant forestry officer Kingstone Tembo thanked NCIC for the initiative, saying it will go a long way in mitigating the effects of climate change.

Tembo blamed charcoal- making for deforestation in most protected areas in the district.

“Karonga is one of the flood-prone districts in the country and the only way to lessen the problem is to plant more trees near river banks and other areas,” he said.

Karonga District Council plans to plant 1 500 000 seedlings in the 2021/22 tree-planting season.

According to Karonga District Forestry Office, the district achieved 86 percent survival rate of trees planted last year.