Parliament takes On timber miller

AKL Timbers, a concessionaire of 6 000 hectares of Viphya Plantation in Mzimba, is lacking capacity to manage the plantation and has only replanted 1 900 hectares in seven years, says a parliamentary body.

In response to the accusations, AKL Timbers forest manager Peter Phakati attributed the slow progress in the work to bush fires.

During a visit to the plantation by the Parliamentary Committee on Natural Resources last week, company officials failed to answer some questions that included  such issues as how many trees they have harvested since 2009, bare land inherited and the number of pine trees that were there.

The committee members also noted that most of the land was bare, or the trees were not pruned, while some plots were not weeded and the company is underutilising the land.

In an interview later, chairperson of the committee Werani Chilenga said they are not satisfied with the company’s work.

He said: “All that members wanted to know are the concession’s conditions. How big was the bare land; the land that had trees; how many trees they have so far harvested and the challenges that they are facing to manage the forest.”

Chilenga said after the visit, the committee was left with a feeling that something fishy might be going on at the plantation.

He accused AKL Timbers of wasting resources that would have been given to another concessionaire.

“We will not hesitate to recommend allocation of some of the land to another investor,” he said. Phakati later asked committee members to consult the Department of Forestry for more information on what they were looking for, an issue that irked the members.

In a separate interview, director of forestry Clement Chilima said they have been having problems with AKL Timbers because it does not have proper records.

He said they have several times written and warned AKL Timbers on poor forest management.

“We also noted the same problems that the MPs have noticed. It requires both of us to meet and iron them out. Only that we are now concentrating on another concessionaire that has done more damage than AKL Timbers,” said Chilima.

The Malawi government has issued a number of concessions and logging licences to some private companies to utilise and manage forests.

Information posted on Malawi Investment and Trade Centre (Mitc) website shows that full commercial potential of Malawi’s large forest plantations in Mzimba, Rumphi, Dedza, Mulanje and Zomba have not been fully exploited.

Earlier, the one-stop investment centre called on investors to explore this opportunity, comprising about 68 000 hectares of softwood.

The Viphya Plantation is the biggest in the country, with 53 000 hectares of pine trees and over the years, the forest has suffered deterioration due to unsustainable harvesting and illegal logging. n