Project No. UNJP/SFS/002/UID

Revitalization of forest training centres in the SADC region for green employment – Phase I

Strengthening Forestry Education and Training in Malawi to integrate Community based Forestry and Food Security

Uapaca kirkiana fruits (Photo by A B Temu)

August B Temu

Arusha, Tanzania

31st July 2015

TABLE OF CONTENTS

ABREVIATIONS

1. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Context 1Main findings, conclusions and recommendations

2. INTRODUCTION

2.1 Context and History2.2 Country statistics2.3 Forestry and bioenergy2.4 Forestry for Food Security and Nutrition

2.4.1 Malawi Food Security Policy Context2.4.2 The Contribution of Trees and Forests to Food Security

and Nutrition2.4.3 Possible Strategies for Enhancing Tree-based Food

Security and Nutrition2.5 Industrial Development and Green Jobs2.6 Forestry education

3. OBJECTIVES AND METHODOLOGY

3.1 Document Reviews3.2 Field Survey Design

4. FINDINGS AND ANALYSIS

4.1 Lilongwe University of Agriculture and Natural Resources (LUANAR)

4.2 Department of Forestry, Mzuzu University (DFMU)4.3 Malawi College of Forestry and Wildlife (MCFW)4.4 Natural Resources College (NRC)

4.4.1 Teaching Programmes Relating to Forestry4.4.2 Graduate employment

4.5 Stakeholders Perceptive on the Importance of Forestry Education4.5.1 Forest Department MNREM4.5.2 Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security4.5.3 Ministry of Education – Higher Education Directorate4.5.4 Ministry Lands Housing and Urban Development and

UNDP

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4.5.5 Ministry of Economic Planning and Development4.5.6 Total Landcare (TLC)4.5.7 Concern Universal (CU)4.5.8 Wood-Based Industries4.5.9 Private Sector Perspectives4.5.10 Stakeholder opinion on skills of forest industry workers4.5.11 Stakeholder opinion on forestry education as a whole

(for full results see Annex 4)4.5.12 Stakeholder Comments/Suggestions on Forestry Edu-

cation:4.6 Food Security

5. CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS

5.1 Cross institutional coordination of forestry education5.2 Public Private Development Partnership for Efficient and Profitable

Forestry5.3 Community Forestry and Food Security5.4 Research and Entrepreneurship in Forestry5.5 Regional Collaboration

6. REFERENCES

LIST OF ANNEXES

Annex 1. Proposed Curriculum on Community Forestry and Food SecurityAnnex 2. Draft project proposalAnnex 3. Final year student survey results (LUANAR)Annex 4. Stakeholders’ Scores on Various Aspects of Forestry in MalawiAnnex 5. Persons met

LIST OF TABLES Table 1: Development indices for four SADC countriesTable 2: Enrolment and graduation for forestry at LUANARTable 3: Structure of programmes and staff at NRCTable 4: Targeted recommendations for education and training institutionsTable 5: Targeted recommendations on forestry education coordination

LIST OF FIGURES

Figure 1 Students’ opinion on relevance of education to actual field conditionsFigure 2 Students' opinion on quality of practical trainingFigure 3 Students' opinion on current business coverageFigure 4 Students' opinion on links with private sectorFigure 5 Students' opinion on food security coverageFigure 6 Students' opinion on coverage of Community forestryFigure 7 Students' opinion on their capacity to undertake forestry -related busi-

nessFigure 8 Stakeholders perspective on commitment to Community ForestryFigure 9 Stakeholders' perspective on current formal recognition of forest foodFigure 10 Stakeholder perspectives on efficiency in use of woodFigure 11 Stakeholders' perspectives on availability of industrial skillsFigure 12 Stakeholders' perspectives on the need for vocational training in

forestryFigure 13 Stakeholders' perspective on quality and adequacy of current forestry

educationFigure 14 Stakeholders' perspective on the need to improve forestry educationFigure 15 Stakeholders' perspective on the importance of forest foods

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ABREVIATIONS

ANAFE African Network for Agriculture, Agroforestry and Natural Resources Education

AU African UnionCD curriculum developmentCPF Country Programme Framework (of FAO)DACUM Developing a CurriculumDFID Department for International Development (UK)EU European UnionFANR Food, Agriculture and Natural Resources Directorate (of SADC)FAO Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United NationsFCASD Forestry Conservation and Advisory ServicesFD Forest Department, MalawiFDMD Forestry Development and Management DivisionFITC Forest Industries Training Centre (Based in Zimbabwe)FPTD Forest Planning and Training DivisionFRIM Forest Research Institute of MalawiGEF (USA) Global Environmental Fund IFAD International Fund for Agricultural DevelopmentILO International Labour OrganisationISID Inclusive Sustainable Industrial Development LUANAR Lilongwe University of Agriculture and Natural ResourcesMAFS Ministry of Agriculture and Food SecurityMCFW Malawi College of Forestry and WildlifeME-HED Ministry of Education – Higher Education DirectorateMEPD Ministry of Economic Planning and DevelopmentMLHUD Ministry of Lands, Housing and Urban DevelopmentMNREM Ministry Of Natural Resources, Energy and MiningMSME Micro, small and medium enterprisesNCHE National Council for Higher EducationNRC Natural Resources CollegeNRM Natural Resources ManagementNTFP Non-Timber Forest ProductNWFP Non-Wood Forest ProductOHS occupational health and safetyPES Payment for Environmental ServicesPPDP Public Private Development Partnership (of UNIDO)PPP Public Private PartnershipR&D Research and DevelopmentREDD Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest DegradationRISDP Regional indicative strategic development plan (of SADC)SADC Southern African Development CommunitySCID Systematic Curriculum and Instructional Development SFM Sustainable Forest ManagementSME Small and Medium EnterprisesSWOT Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and ThreatsTEVETA Technical Education, Vocational and Entrepreneurship Training Authority TNA Training Needs AssessmentTOT Training of Trainers

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1. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

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Context

In this report we share the results of a survey on the state of forestry education in Malawi. The data were collected in July 2015, through questionnaires, face to face interviews, field observations by the consultant, a stakeholders’ workshop and multi-media sources such as publications, reports and websites of relevant institutions. The stakeholders involved in the survey included forestry education institutions, educators, students, private sector (forest industries), education managers, Government and non-government organizations involved in forestry activities.

The survey was funded by the Government of Finland and implemented by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) as part of a broader pro-gramme dubbed “Improved regional collaboration on forestry and wood industry edu-cation and training in the SADC Region leading to creation of green employment and sustainable forest management and utilization”, jointly implemented by FAO and the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO). The findings, conclu-sions and recommendations emanating from the survey are summarized hereunder. Note that while this report emphasizes the areas of improvement it does not in any way denigrate the hard work that is currently done by all teaching institutions and other forestry stakeholders in Malawi.

Main findings, conclusions and recommendations

Currently, Malawi’s investment in forestry education is skewed in favour of profes-sional level training at the expense of vocational and technical training. There are two universities and one technical college teaching forestry. The college only runs a dip-loma programme, following a decision to phase out the certificate level training. This has major implications in the development of forest industries as the skilled work force in forestry is currently quite small and dwindling. Forestry stakeholders expressed overwhelming demand for technical and vocational training. It is recommended that vocational level training in forestry is established at the Natural Resources College (now part of LUANAR).This is seen as a major step towards green jobs for Malawi youth.

The departments of forestry at Lilongwe University of Agriculture and Natural Re-sources and Mzuzu University operate independent of each other despite the similarity of their programmes and also common challenges in delivering their degree training. There is a need to institute cooperation and coordination of degree-level training at the two universities so that some form of complementarity of their programmes is attained. This way, each university will have a clear niche for its graduates. The current aca-demic capacity (that is faculty, learning resources and laboratories) needs to be raised to meet the international standards for forestry education. Further training and expos-ure of the faculty is recommended. Complementary to this, there is a need to equip the laboratories with appropriate learning facilities and provide resources for practical training.

Technical training at Malawi College of Forestry and Wildlife is often interrupted due to lack of funds. It is recommended that the Forest Department assists the college to transform its programmes by applying a business model so that it can attract privately sponsored students and also run short courses that will generate income.

The FAO/UNIDO programme should consider supporting the training and supply of laboratory and field equipment for degree-level training; assist the Natural Resources College to develop vocational training facilities and support Malawi College of Forestry to develop a business model for its training.

On Community Forestry the current teaching modules need to be improved, especially to include the social and cultural aspects of local communities. Following the survey results, a model community forestry curriculum was developed for consideration by the teaching institutions.

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Regarding food security and nutrition content in education programmes, it was found that this area is barely covered. Two modules on food security have been incorporated into the proposed Community Forestry curriculum for consideration by teaching institu-tions.

Overall, the link between forestry education and the private sector is weak. There are great opportunities for the private sector to engage and contribute to the quality and relevance (effectiveness) of forestry education and training at all levels. Various sug-gestions have been proposed, including strengthening of practicum, research and business-oriented lectures.

2. INTRODUCTION

This report presents the results of a survey undertaken in July 2015 on the status of forestry education in Malawi, a wide range of stakeholders were involved and they contributed to the understanding of challenges involved and the formulation of recom-mendations. The results presented herein will contribute to the development of a pro-posal to improve forestry education for green jobs in Malawi.

2.1 Context and History

The survey was carried out as a part of a broader programme on “Improved regional collaboration on forestry and wood industry education and training in the SADC Re-gion leading to creation of green employment and sustainable forest management and utilization” jointly coordinated by FAO and UNIDO. The programme was incepted in Malawi, South Africa, Zambia and Zimbabwe in 2013/14. The inception report identi-fies the need for deeper understanding and development of forestry education in Malawi. This report builds on the situation analysis document developed by Juha Kiuru (2013) and entitled “Strengthening Forestry Training Centres and Wood Industries for Green Employment in the SADC Region Project”.

2.2 Country statistics

It is necessary to develop an understanding of the importance of forestry in Malawi, especially in relation to development indices and also in relation to the other countries involved in the FAO/UNIDO programme. With a large population and just about 10% access to electricity the vast majority of Malawians rely on wood for cooking and heat-ing energy. This in itself is a major contribution to the economy even though it is barely acknowledged in economic statistics. In Table 1 some development indices are presented:

Table 1: Development indices for four SADC countriesCountry 2014

Popula-tion (mil-

lions)

2012Urb-aniz-ation(%)

2013 GDP Per

Cap (USD)

2014 GFSI rating*

Land area (LA) Km2

Forest Cover (% of LA)**

Density Persons per Km2

Malawi 17.26 16 226 33.0 94,080 33.6 162Zambia 15.41 40 1540 32.6 743,398 66.1 20Zimb-

abwe 14.50 33 905 NA 386,847 38.7 35

South

Africa 53.49 65 12,867 61.0 1.214,470 7.6 44

*GFSI is Global food Security Index. Maximum is 100, minimum is zero.**Forest area is land under natural or planted stands of trees of at least 5 meters in situ, whether productive or not, and excludes tree stands in agricultural production

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systems (for example, in fruit plantations and agroforestry systems) and trees in urban parks and gardens. Data Sources: Compiled from various World Bank and United Nations Statistics publicly available

The table shows that relative to the other countries, Malawi population is largely rural and directly dependent on agriculture and natural resources, especially forestry, for their livelihoods. The forest cover is quite substantial and should contribute more to livelihoods and the economy, but due to a skewed distribution and inefficient harvest-ing and processing it is rapidly declining. The prevalence of undernourishment in Malawi is estimated at 21.8% of the population, equivalent to 3.6 million people (www.fao.org/3/a-i4030e.pdf). Food security and nutrition is low. FAO (2014) The question therefore is what can be done by forestry and related sectors to contribute to more income and raise national prosperity; and how can forestry education make a difference?

2.3 Forestry and bioenergy

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Malawi, as all other SADC countries relies on bioenergy and especially wood for cook-ing and heating. It is an established fact that for most of Africa, access to electricity is low (generally below 15%) and for Malawi it is estimated at 9%. However, access to electricity is not in itself a valid indicator of its use in heating and especially cooking. For instance, it has been shown that in Rwanda only 4% of those with access to elec-tricity use it for cooking. The rest (96%) use charcoal or firewood (World Bank 2012).

Studies in Tanzania and elsewhere in Africa show that current rates of consumption of charcoal and firewood exceed the allowable harvests and threaten future availability of forest resources (Mwampamba 2007). This situation is changing but extremely slowly, so for the next 50 years biomass is projected to continue dominating the energy sector in Africa. Despite its importance, this source of energy is not properly recognized and accounted for in the national accounts (International Bank for Reconstruction 2011).

Various studies recommend policy and technological interventions to redress the situ-ation. Among the policy areas often recommended are:

Inclusion of biomass energy in national accounting Formalizing biomass energy business, including taxation and incentives Supporting biomass energy planning and financing (including tree planting) Supporting education, training and technological innovations in this area

On the economic and environmental aspects, there are opportunities to create green jobs in biomass energy projects through:

Growing trees and shrubs with high calorific value Efficient cutting, drying (for firewood) and carbonization processes (for charcoal) Efficient combustion and use of energy (stoves) Ethics in business development, including certification Good use of residues such as ashes as fertilizer

Human and institutional capacity is crucial to achieving any policy or other measures as indicated above. Forestry education must address such needs.

2.4 Forestry for Food Security and Nutrition

Food security and nutrition is a very broad area, to which all land use disciplines (in-cluding forestry, fisheries, wildlife) and organizations responsible for water, health and energy contribute. All too often some see it as an area exclusively under (rather than led by) ministries responsible for Agriculture. Many of the currently cultivated crops and livestock were all domesticated from the wilderness around 8300BC (for crops) and 7500BC (for livestock). http://teachmiddleeast.lib.uchicago.edu/foundations/ori-gins-of-civilization/framing-the-issues/issue-01.html There is plentiful evidence on the dependence of local communities on forest foods: In India over 50 million people dir-ectly depend on forest foods for subsistence. In Lao people’s Democratic Republic 80% of the population consume wild foods (FAO 2011). In much of West and Central Africa bush meat is a significant proportion of the total protein consumption. Estimates on the extent to which local communities in Malawi depend of forests for food were not available.

The security of tenures on land, forests and trees has significant implications on food security and nutrition. Human and institutional capacity (as infrastructure and terms of trade) is also important as we witness increased interest and number of stakeholder on tree and forest resources. Within the area of land use, food security and nutrition must be analysed in the context of whole landscape management and also sector by sector. It is in this light, that we discuss the Malawi situation in relation to forestry, community forestry and especially agroforestry.

2.4.1 Malawi Food Security Policy Context

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The Malawi Food and Nutritional Security Policy of August 2006 seeks to implement the SADC Dar es Salaam commitment of April 2004 (among other regional and global commitments). The policy clearly spells out that its implementation ‘will require a di-versity of technical knowledge and skills among service providers and beneficiaries’. Therefore a comprehensive capacity development strategy is part and parcel of the implementation process of the policy.

The policy recognizes the role of environment in food security and nutrition and spe-cifically mentions the sound management, conservation and utilization of natural re-sources and the environment to achieve increased and sustainable productivity and development now and in the future. Under food and nutrition monitoring system the policy points to natural resources information, particularly land, water, meteorology, environmental factors as crucial for agricultural productivity.

2.4.2 The Contribution of Trees and Forests to Food Security and Nutrition

For Malawi, as for many other African countries, forests and trees support food and nutrition in the following ways:

Contribution to food availability

Serving as the genetic reserve for future crops and livestock. All current crops and livestock were once wild plants and animals, domesticated by man. There are many more that are yet to be domesticated.

Directly supplying fodder for domestic livestock and wildlife and forage for bees: Bush meat, honey and mushrooms are major sources of protein and important micronutrients for many countries, including Malawi.

Herbal medicine that provide for rural communities who do not have access to modern health facilities (food and medicine are linked to health).

Providing a wide range of green vegetables, mushrooms, fruits, nuts, across all seasons. These are important food security safety nets especially in the drylands.

Supporting adaptation to climate change by providing food safety nets; for in-stance trees and forests are often the only sources of fodder in extreme dry condi-tions.

Contribution to access to food

Income arising from the sale of tree products, especially building poles, timber, firewood, charcoal and herbal medicines contributes towards access to food. This aspect is poorly documented in Malawi, as in many other countries.

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Contribution to food utilization

Providing the energy (fuelwood and charcoal) needed to cook food. According to SOFO 2014, 81.8% of the total population of Malawi use woodfuel for cooking

Water is equally important in enabling the processing and cooking of food.

Contribution to stability of food availability, access and utilization

Moderating extreme weather conditions, thereby enabling food crops to thrive Protecting natural sources that supply water for human consumption and for agri -

cultural production Protecting soils from erosion by holding them together, especially on steep slopes Limiting damage to crops through wind breaking Mitigating climate change through carbon sequestration, therefore delaying impact

of climate change on agricultural productivity Under agroforestry, fixation of nitrogen to improve soil fertility (N-fixing trees)

Working from Malawi, Akinnifesi et al 2008 produced a highly informative book on indi-genous fruit trees in the tropics, with a focus on their domestication, utilization and commercialization. Malawi has many of the identified species such as Uapaca kirki-ana, Adansonia digitata, Tamarindus indica, Strychnos cocculoides, Syzygium Afric-ana, Parinari curatellifolia and Sclerocarya birrea. For many of these species, the biggest challenge is to map out the products, undertake domestication of the species, establish reliable germplasm supply systems, work out pest management, test them for nutrition values and set up business and marketing strategies. Foresters must be trained in these areas. In South Africa, the fruits of Sclerocarya birrea are already highly commercialized in the production of a beverage known as Amarula (literally ‘of the marula tree ’). Marula is the local name for the species.

2.4.3 Possible Strategies for Enhancing Tree-based Food Security and Nutrition

There are three key strategies in enhancing food security through forestry

Forest management strategies that enhances the productivity of the novel food products and sustainability of supplies

Developing full value chains and marketing food and non-food products from forests for improved access to food

Domesticating species that are known to produce foods and promoting their cultiv-ation by local communities.

In his article on The Value of Indigenous Fruit-Bearing Trees in Miombo Woodland Areas of South-Central Africa, Akinnifesi (2008) identified a continuum in the pattern of fruit trees in cultivated Miombo landscapes. He observed the retention of Miombo fruit trees during clearance and subsequent domestication of wild fruit trees (http://www.odi.org/publications/704-value-indigenous-fruit-bearing-trees-miombo-woodland-areas-south-central-africa). This is true for Malawi, Zambia, Zimbabwe and Tanzania. Wild fruits are nutritionally valuable, especially during seasons when other foods were scanty.

Trees and forests may also have negative impacts on food security, for instance:

Attracting birds and other vermin that can destroy crops Shading crops that require direct sun

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Healthy forests provide human communities with a host of important ecosystem ser-vices, including the provision of food, clean water, fuel, and natural medicines. John-son et al (2010) studied the relationship between forest cover, demography and health in Malawi. Their analysis shows that children living in areas with net forest cover loss between 2000 and 2010 were 19% less likely to have a diverse diet and 29% less likely to consume vitamin A-rich foods than children living in areas with no net change in forest cover. Conversely, children living in communities with higher percentages of forest cover were more likely to consume vitamin A-rich foods and less likely to experi-ence diarrhoea. Net gains in forest/tree cover over the 10-year period was associated with a 34% decrease in the odds of children experiencing diarrhoea (P =0 .002). While this does not imply causal relationships between forest cover and child health and nu-trition outcomes, the findings are a pointer to short- and long-term impacts of ongoing deforestation and ecosystem degradation in Malawi. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25276536

Malawi’s food security situation has varied somewhat widely depending on the level of investment into agriculture and especially maize production. This situation is likely to remain like that until there is a major transformation in the agricultural sector. With such a large population and very small land area (see Table 1 on population density) and with a largely smallholder agri-economy impacted by huge climate variation/change, some new thinking is necessary. An agricultural foresight study that brings in views from the Ministry of lands and all other land use sectors is needed. The key challenges include raising productivity, stemming post-harvest losses and diversifying the crops through agroforestry to enable production all year round. There is a major challenge regarding future land planning and especially tenure, but that was outside the scope of this study.

Regarding nutritional security, the World Health Organization (WHO) recommended minimum consumption of fruit and vegetables is 146 Kilograms per capita per year. The average for Malawi in 2014 was 12 Kg of fruits and 43 Kg of vegetables, making a total of only 55 Kg per capita per year. This level (<38%) falls far short of the recom-mended minimum, indicating the prevalence of nutritional insecurity. It is necessary to consider intensifying agroforestry and horticultural development in the country.

2.5 Industrial Development and Green Jobs

The direct and indirect contribution of trees and forests to livelihood and economic development in Malawi (as is many other developing countries) is grossly underestim-ated. This is because the majority of activities involved, such as cutting of fuelwood, production of charcoal, harvesting of non-timber forest products (such as herbal medi-cines, spices, gums, resins, honey, wild fruits, bush meat) are largely informal and hardly monitored. The value chains for all these products are yet to be properly de-veloped. There are substantial opportunities for improved on-farm production and value adding (especially processing and packing) and marketing of these products.

Although the harvesting and processing of industrial wood is formal and regulated, there is still substantive ‘illegal’ extraction that is unaccounted for, especially for products used by local communities such as building poles and stakes. For trees growing on farmers’ fields the records are practically unavailable. With the near-deple-tion of industrial wood from indigenous forests, the current and future industrial wood can only come from industrial plantations, woodlots and agroforests. Here is a great opportunity for industrial development. Experiences from India and Bangladesh show that industrial wood (such as poles, fuelwood and pulpwood) is easily produced on farms and locally processed. In Kenya, over 70% the timber consumed in the areas around Mount Kenya is raised and processed on farms. This provides green jobs and substantially raises the incomes of the local communities.

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The massive migration of out of school youth to cities can be slowed down by training them to acquire skills needed to develop and run cottage industries based on forest and non-wood forest products. This is an important aspect when developing com-munity forestry and community based forest and non-wood forest products processing in Malawi. Development of new community forestry business opportunities may also create opportunities for creation of public-private partnership development projects.

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2.6 Forestry education

Globally there is a debate on how forestry education should be transformed to meet the rapidly growing needs of forestry stakeholders. Among others, the stakeholders include local communities who are struggling to meet their livelihood needs especially wood fuel, quality water, timber for construction, food, traditional medicine, and a wide range of non-wood tree/forest products. With growing urbanization, the demand for construction wood is ever increasing, raising the consumption of industrial wood. In the backdrop of all these, we have the demand for agricultural expansion which in the case of Africa is a major cause of deforestation and forest degradation and the loss of biodiversity. Over the last two decades, the issues of climate change have emerged with a focus on forests as a major resource for climate change mitigation and adapta-tion.

The above scenario places pressure on forest management and especially on the for-ester. While age-old principles of sustainable forest management still hold, they have to be applied to meet the multi-faceted and competing demands for food, fibre, fuel and environment. This raises the question on the type of education needed to meet the complex demands of forests.

Nowhere is this question as relevant as in Malawi, where the population density is high and largely rural, with high dependency on primary forest products for livelihoods. The dwindling natural forests need to be regenerated and supplemented by planta-tions and agroforestry. All these call for a new forester, with the knowledge and skills needed to meet the competing demands and with special skills to work with local com-munities on forestry and related issues.

Malawi, like many other African countries is experiencing the expansion of university level education, at the expense of vocational and technical education. This is true in agriculture as well as forestry. The impact is clearly a depletion of the technical skills so badly needed for industrial development, and worse, joblessness for degree hold-ers. Temu et al (2005) has pointed out this anomaly which actually inverts the hier-archy where degree holders are many more than technicians and skilled workers.

3. OBJECTIVES AND METHODOLOGY

The objectives of this survey were: To analyse the state of forestry education in Malawi in relation to the country’s

needs, To understand the specific situation of forestry training and education capacity in

Malawi and identify areas needing improvement, and To develop a vision and programme that addresses the identified challenges, and

enhances the contribution of forestry to food security and nutrition; the role of local communities in forestry; and green jobs development.

These objectives were specifically targeted at enhancing the contribution of forestry to food security and nutrition and green jobs development. Special attention was paid on enhancing the role of local communities in forest management.

3.1 Document Reviews

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Data collection started with a review of a Situation Analysis Report developed by FAO/UNIDO in 2013/14. The report analysed the overall forestry situation and chal-lenges in four countries - Malawi, South Africa, Zambia and Zimbabwe. The report, together with other FAO/UNIDO project documents provided the context for the need to undertake an intensive analysis of the status forestry education and future needs for Malawi. The consultant complemented the report by undertaking a literature study on forestry education in the SADC region, with a special focus on community forestry and the contribution of forests to food security and nutrition. Sources of information in-cluded websites of forestry education institutions, brochures, university prospectuses and personal communication with some educators. The information gathered was applied in the design of an intensive field survey which was undertaken in Malawi in July 2015.

3.2 Field Survey Design

Three approaches were used in the design of field data collection:

First, to gather data from training institutions a questionnaire was developed targeted at understanding the history, curriculum content, teaching capacity (human, financial and physical facilities), future plans and priority needs. Similarly, a special question-naire was designed to collect data from final-year students/graduates in order to cap-ture their own perspectives on the effectiveness of training programmes. A third ques-tionnaire was targeted at other forestry stakeholders. This questionnaire was intended to assist in the conceptualization on areas of improvement in current forestry educa-tion and training. It specifically addressed four areas of interest; a) Community forestry, b) Forestry for Food security, c) Forestry business capacity development and d) the demand for human and institutional capacity for forestry education. The re-spondents were from education management, quality assurance, environment, risk management, wood utilization, climate change, botany, ecology, forest policy, forestry, environmental health, community forestry, Forest management, forest industries, silvi-culture, wood business/industry and also forestry education. Some respondents had more than one area of specialization. The respondents had gathered at a specially convened briefing workshop on the FAO/UNIDO forestry support initiative. Respond-ents were requested to score against statements made in the questionnaire. The scores ranged from 1 (strongly disagree) to 5 (strongly agree).

Second, to understand the perspectives of educators, government ministries, timber companies and NGOs active in forestry, the consultant visited their premises and car-ried out face to face interviews with their leaders and /or senior staff. The interviews covered their understanding of the forestry training situation, future needs and general perspectives on the performance of forestry graduates. The interviews also covered whether or not they were involved in the development of forestry education curricula or in practical training (where applicable), and their future forestry capacity needs. The results are presented as narratives, providing the perspectives of the interviewees.Third, a workshop organized by FAO and UNIDO in Lilongwe on 22-23 July 2015 brought together 23 participants including educators, private sector, government offi-cials, NGOs and international organizations to discuss forestry education, among other topics relevant to forestry. General impressions were captured from the discus-sions.

To complement the above data collection methods, the consultant visited the cam-puses of Lilongwe University of Agriculture and Natural Resources (LUANAR), Malawi College of Forestry and wildlife (MCFW0 and Natural Resources College (NRC) and viewed teaching facilities, held discussions with staff and students (students were available only in the case of LUANAR) and also education managers including the vice Chancellor of LUANAR. All field data were collected from 17th to 29th July 2015. The focus was on forestry edu-cation needs, content (curriculum), relevance, capacity gaps and future needs. Avail-able literature was also gathered and reviewed to contribute to the analysis.

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Some of the data gathered through questionnaires, especially where respondents were asked to score against specific statements were developed into frequency charts. The rest of the data were collected through interviews, narratives or literature studies and therefore non-parametric processes were applied in the presentation and analysis.

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4. FINDINGS AND ANALYSIS

In the following presentation, the forestry education statistics are shared. For LUANAR, MCFW and NRC data were collected through direct interviews, and a ques-tionnaire filled in by staff and students. In the case of Mzuzu University (MU) the data were entirely drawn from their website.

4.1 Lilongwe University of Agriculture and Natural Resources (LUANAR)

The Department of Forestry at Lilongwe University of Agriculture and Natural Re-sources (LUANAR) runs two degree programmes; BSc Forestry and BSc Agroforestry, both supported financially by Malawi government. The staff strength at the time of this survey was 3 PhD (male), 2 PhD (female) and 4 MSc (Male), totalling 9 academic staff. However, the allowed establishment is 13 staff. The rest were either on study leave or yet to be recruited. Two more staff were expected to become available by the end of 2015. Thus the department depends on part-time staff outsourced from other universities, colleges and government to fill the capacity gap. The department is headed by Dr (Mrs) Judith Kamoto. Among the staff are specialists in forest biology, forest utilization, and community forestry. For the two full-time first degree pro-grammes (Bachelor degrees in Forestry and Agroforestry) plus graduate studies, the urgency of raising the staff number to at least the establishment level cannot be over-stated. The degree programmes take 4 years.

Within the SADC countries there are forestry departments with similar or lower faculty capacity, e.g. at Stellenbosch University and at Venda University (both in South Africa). However, when compared with staff strengths at Copperbelt University in Zambia, Eduardo Mondlane University in Mozambique and Sokoine University in Tan-zania the staff establishment level is equivalent to just about 50%.

Student enrolment and graduationIn Table 2 the statistics on student enrolment and graduation over the past three years are presented. Note that due to the fact that after the first year of study students are allowed to transfer into degree programmes other than the ones they first enrolled for. There is therefore no clear correlation between enrolment and graduation.

Table 2: Enrolment and graduation for forestry at LUANAR2013 2014 2015

EnrolmentMale Female Male Female Male Fe-

male25 9 17 19 25 15

Total 34 Total 36 Total 40Graduation

5 7 1 7 14 10Total 12 Total 8 Total 24

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The large student dropout rates can be explained as arising from the fact that many students admitted to forestry/agroforestry studies did not select these areas in the first place and therefore they choose to transfer to other disciplines once opportunities arise. This indicated low interest in the forestry profession as a whole, and it was ex-plained as largely due to the lack of awareness on forestry at the time of enrolment. See the results of a student questionnaire below for further explanation.

Training Facilities

The small building used for forestry education is shared with the Department of Horti -culture. All forestry faculty share just two offices. A single laboratory room is available and is also shared with the Horticulture Department. The laboratory has no forestry training equipment. It was explained that the university is making arrangements to provide more space to the Forestry Department. Field training facilities are available at Bunda forest Reserve (on LUANAR campus), and at the Malawi College of Forestry and Wildlife (where the facilities are severely degraded) and with private wood indus-tries (especially RAIPLY Company Ltd). The challenge is to secure financial support for students to visit and use these facilities. The students indicated their own frustra-tion regarding the weak practical training. Student access to internet resources also requires expansion of the equipment and space available.

Regarding teaching materials these are available in all biological and management sciences, but there are major shortfalls in the areas of forest mensuration, forest en-gineering, wood science & technology and climate change. Overall, the need for ex-panded physical facilities and laboratory equipment is substantial.

The curriculum

Three aspects of critical importance were evaluated: Coverage of community forestry, food security and business. Community forestry is covered under a subject known as “Community forestry for Rural Development”. Food security and nutrition is touched on when discussing non-timber forest products (NTFPs) but with limited details. Business is covered mildly under Marketing, Economics and Entrepreneurship. However, the faculty are of the opinion that these areas require strengthening.

Student perspectives

Twenty students filled in the questionnaire. The findings are presented hereunder, and detailed results may be gleaned in Annex 3.

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Photo 1 Forestry Department building at LUANAR

On choosing to study forestry

The question was whether forestry education was their first choice. The responses were for 6 students YES while 14 students said NO. For the 14 students who did not have forestry as first choice they had indicated preference to study Environmental Sci-ence, Nursing, Pure science and Nutrition. However, on the question whether or not they preferred continuing with forestry studies, 5 said YES while 9 did not like forestry even though they were in their final year of study.

On quality and relevance of forestry education

In the following charts the results of final year students’ scores on quality and relev-ance of forestry education at LUANAR are presented. There were altogether 20 re-spondents. Note that in chart number 4, one student did not present a score on the question.

Poor Fair Good Very good Excellent0123456789

10

5

0

3

9

3

Number of scores

Figure 1 Students’ opinion on relevance of education to actual field conditions

The students indicate here that the studies they undertake are quite fitting for the ac-tual field conditions in Malawi. However, as demonstrated in the next figure, they strongly indicate weak practicum.

Poor Fair Good Very good Excellent0123456789

10 9

3

7

10

Number of Scores

Figure 2 Students' opinion on quality of practical training

The students are quite clearly uncomfortable with the quality of practical training facilit-ies at the campus the laboratory is poorly equipped. There is a shortage for all types of tools/equipment for measuring trees/forest, biological and chemical analyses, wood working, wood chemistry and also computers for data management

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Poor Fair Good Very good Excellent0

1

2

3

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Number of Scores

Figure 3 Students' opinion on current business coverage

In the curriculum business is not mentioned. However within forest economics and in forest industries some aspects of timber, firewood and charcoal production are dis-cussed. This is insufficient to meet the needs for graduates to become entrepreneurs.

Poor Fair Good Very good

Excellent0

0.51

1.52

2.53

3.54

4.5 4 4 4

3

4Number of scores

Figure 4 Students' opinion on links with private sector

Clearly here the students had varied views on how their studies are connected with private sector. This could possibly be because they only consider big companies as private sector. Micro, small and medium enterprises are often not labelled as private sectors in many African countries.

Poor Fair Good Very good Excellent0

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Number of scores

Figure 5 Students' opinion on food security coverage

The students seem to be confident that food security aspects are well covered. How-ever, an analysis of the curriculum does not reveal the same. There is sufficient listing of foods and other products from trees and forests. However, deep treatise of food security and nutrition and especially food processing, storage and marketing is weak.

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Poor Fair Good Very good Excellent0123456789

2

6

8

4

Number of scores

Figure 6 Students' opinion on coverage of Community forestry

Community forestry is a very strong aspect of forestry in Malawi. The production of a guidebook on this topic, specifically targeted at Malawi has made it quite easy for the teaching of this subject. The guide covers structure, processes, authorities and bylaws. The challenges involved are addressed in the section on Community Forestry.

Poor Fair Good Very Good

Excellent012345678

0

3 3

7 7Number of scores

Figure 7 Students' opinion on their capacity to undertake forestry -related business

The confidence of students here is high. However, they did raise the challenges in securing employment or capital to initiate own enterprises. Over the last three years there were no openings for public service in forestry, and there was no evidence of graduates initiating any forestry enterprises.

Suggestions for improvement:

The students were asked to suggest improvements in the forestry education pro-gramme. The following areas emerged as requiring improvement.

More practicum in mensuration, silviculture, PFM and management planning (20 respondents). We need skills development in these areas

Introduce internships/industrial attachments Provide more and better learning materials needed in all subjects There is too much focus on theory, students just work hard for grades Give more time for project research (a whole semester or more)

Other Comments and conclusions:

The students had the opportunity to make any other comments. The following emerged:

Not enough lecturers (8 respondents)

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Graduates end up as secondary school teachers, wasting the professional training (2 respondents) Forestry is very good and important but with no practical training it is hard to prac-

tice (6 respondents) The Forestry Department is poorly financed (2 respondents)

The general conclusions made by the students were as follows:

There is a general need to popularize forestry education among prospective stu-dents so they understand the profession better before applying for university education

Staff capacity requires strengthening There is a need to improve the supply of learning resources There is a need to expand and equip laboratories and strengthen field/practical

training Community forestry and food security content in curricula require strengthening There is a need to forge stronger links with private sector so as to strengthen busi -

ness training including internships The time allowed to carry out special project research and write up is too short.

Opportunities for expansion of Forestry Department facilities:

Consultations with the Vice Chancellor and the Head of Forestry Department on the future forestry space needs revealed that with the establishment of LUANAR Univer-sity at Bunda College, a decision has been reached to incorporate the Natural Re-sources College (NRC) as a constituent college of LUANAR. This has major implica-tions in how forestry and natural resources education will be taught. An immediate opportunity is the availability of the NRC campus for forestry training. If realised, this would provide adequate space for proper development of laboratories and office space. Additionally, NRC is just 11 Kilometres from Lilongwe whereas Bunda College is 32 Kilometres from Lilongwe. A considerable proportion of staff reside in Lilongwe so transportation to and from the university campus at Bunda is a challenge and costly.

The NRC is a very interesting institution because it is already registered with TEVETA and therefore undertakes vocational training. It would therefore be a fitting institution to host, develop and implement vocational training in Forestry, subject to appropriate staffing and equipment and funding arrangements.

4.2 Department of Forestry, Mzuzu University (DFMU)

At Mzuzu University, forestry is placed under the Faculty of Environmental Sciences Established in 2003; the department offers BSc level courses in Forestry and was the first to do so in Malawi. The initial objective was to meet the immediate needs of the Ministry of Environment, Energy and Mineral Resources, but currently, the programme produces forestry graduates for the ministry and also other needs, public and private.  Its mission is to ensure the application of sound technical and scientific knowledge to forestry development in Malawi through teaching, research and dissemination of knowledge and provision of expert services. The department also offers refresher and tailor-made short courses in various fields of forestry or environment. Research activit-ies cover Forest Governance and Community Forestry, Forest Ecology and Manage-ment, Non-Timber Forest Products, Policy and Cross-sectoral Issues, Biodiversity and Conservation and Tree Improvement.

The curriculum is broad, covering Watershed Management, Policy and Law, Planning and Administration, Forest Engineering, Wood Science, Forest Products and Utilisa-tion, Environmental Management and Conservation, Forest Protection, Tree Improve-ment, Community Based Natural Resources Management, Botany, Plant Genetics, Biometry and Research Methods, Forest Economics, Forest Management Planning,

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Agroforestry, Silviculture, Introduction to Economics, Forest Ecology, Forest Manage-ment, Biochemistry, Social Forestry, Statistics, Forest Mensuration, and Inventory, Silviculture I (Seed Technology and Nurseries), and Silviculture II (Establishment and Tending).

The academic capacity includes three Associate professors, two senior lecturers and five lecturers (of whom 2 on study leave). Obviously like at LUANAR the staff is under pressure so part-time lecturers are engaged to meet the curriculum needs. The prox-imity of the university to large forest plantations and forest industries is a big advant-age for practical learning. Thus the Department of Forestry has outreach programmes and research in support of institutional and policy dynamics in the fields of environ-ment and forestry. (Source:http://www.mzuni.ac.mw/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=61&Itemid=59).

4.3 Malawi College of Forestry and Wildlife (MCFW)

The Malawi College of Forestry and wildlife (MCFW) operates under the Forest De-partment in the Ministry of Natural Resources, Energy and Environment. Therefore, its mandate and budget are controlled by the mother ministry. In its governance there is a Board composed of representatives of government, Forest Department, wood in-dustries, LUANAR, Mzuzu University and the wildlife management authority. Currently there is no representation from civil societies or local communities. The college is located near Dedza town in Southern Malawi, an area whose landscape is undergoing rapid degradation through agricultural expansion and rising demand for fuelwood and charcoal. The college’s small forest area has been encroached and con-tinues to be under pressure from neighbouring villages. The college’s 1000 ha area would benefit from agroforestry, as efforts to reforest the depleted 500 ha have been frustrated by both inclement weather and local community encroachment.

Programme and Teaching staff

Until 2013 The College offered two-year (certificate) and three-year (diploma) training programmes in forestry and wildlife. However, the certificate programme has been phased out because it was considered to be too low to be effective at extension level. The authorities consider a diploma graduate would have stronger skills and knowledge and is needed to solve the complex natural resource issues at community extension level. Apparently, this synchs well with the current practice in the ministry of Agricul-ture and Food Security. However, the financial implications of supplying forestry dip-loma holders at the community level are quite substantial. It is estimated that currently the forestry extension presence at community level at 1/8 th that of the Ministry of Agri-culture. There is another challenge which has to be overcome: Generally, holders of diploma qualifications both in agriculture and in forestry are less interested in place-ment with rural communities, largely due to a legacy that it is a niche for certificate holders. So there is a need for mind-set change in this respect.

Teaching capacity

The teaching staff capacity consists of 8 persons comprising 1 certificate holder (male), 2 BSc holders (male), 4 MSc holders (2 male and 2 female) and 1 PhD holder (male). The Principal is Dr (Ms) Trinitas Sanganimalunje. Overall Gender balance in the staff is good. Student enrolment is governed entirely by the Forest Department staffing needs. All the graduates are usually absorbed by the Forest Department. Few have found jobs in NGOs like Total Land Care (TLC), World Vision International (WVI) and Conservation Universal (CU).

Community forestry and forest food coverage

Community forestry is covered briefly under the course Community-Based Forest Management (CBFM). Forest food and nutrition is just mentioned in the presentation of non-timber forest products (NTFP) and in Participatory Forest Management (PFM).

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Business aspects of forestry are not covered. The college has no formal links with private sector or any local communities.

Practicum training facilities

In the past the college had a training sawmill that was used for practical training and some fund-raising. However the mill is currently dysfunctional and would cost far too much to rehabilitate, for what it is worth. Besides, there is no source of logs nearby so this is no longer an option. Further, within the current staff there is no capacity to train in this area. Field visits are often limited by financial constraints.

Funding situation and challenge

Due to budgetary constraints the diploma programme at MCFW is run intermittently resulting in students completing their diplomas in much longer period than the planned three years. Thus there are periods when the college is practically closed. These are times when some of the lecturers are able to engage in other activities, including teaching at LUANAR. The big challenge here is to secure funding for the diploma courses to run smoothly within the planned 3 years. Thus the college was not produ-cing diploma holders in 2015 due to financial constraints (there were none in 2013 and 2014).This raises a question whether with the current financing level at MCFW it is realistic to expect the ministry to fulfil its ambition. In this report, we propose alternat-ive financing mechanism and fund raising by the college. The college depends en-tirely on the government (Forest Department) allocations for staffing and running its programmes in forestry and wildlife.

The college has made some plans to raise income from short training events and also allow the admission of privately sponsored students. However, these plans could not materialize as the mother ministry and treasury were yet to negotiate and agree on whether or not to establish a revolving fund for the college. If this is finally agreed, it will be a viable option for enabling the college to sustain itself financially, albeit with some government subvention.

Future needs

According to the College leadership the greatest needs are:

Lecturer training, exposure and updating on current forestry science, innovations and development

Acquisition of training equipment, especially for forest mensuration, GIS (including remote sensing products), computers

Curriculum revision especially to address indigenous forest management, food security and nutrition and entrepreneurship.

Networking and exchange of staff with other SADC colleges The college staff would benefit from visiting role model institutions in the SADC region and learn the business approach to education. .

Opportunities to raise funds

The college is well placed to generate income from training activities such as:

Raising seedlings of useful tree species for farmers and especially NGOs inter-ested in supporting the tree planting activities. The current nursery is underutil-ized. Linked to this would be farmer and extension staff training programmes in the form of short course of up to three months. These could bring sustainable in-come to the college.

Short courses can be conducted in the following areas: Nursery management and tree planting, Natural resources management, Agroforestry, Beekeeping and Honey processing. It is proposed that honey processing facilities including honey packing be developed for the college. The shade currently housing the broken

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sawmill is intact and could be improved and used for honey processing and pack-ing.

Firewood harvesting and charcoal production are the major causes of forest de-gradation in Dedza, including the college area. Training in energy saving meas-ures would be an excellent response to the problem. Thus it is proposed that the college is assisted to develop capacity and curriculum for wood energy manage-ment and conservation. This will be a very powerful area of training. The cur-riculum would include selection and growing high calorie species, harvesting and proper drying, efficient charcoal kilns, efficient cooking stoves, and overall energy conservation measures.

Training in all these areas and also selling the products developed could be part and parcel of the business model for the college. In this context, the college could develop a diploma programme in Wood Energy Development and Management. Malawi would benefit enormously from such expertise.

Photo 2 Illegal harvesting of firewood is rampant due to scarcity of alternative energy

4.4 Natural Resources College (NRC)

The Natural Resource College (NRC) is being integrated into LUANAR as a constitu-ent college. It is interesting and important to discuss how its current programmes in agriculture and natural resource management will sync with those currently managed at Bunda College of Agriculture (BCA) (also a constituent college of LUANAR).

4.4.1 Teaching Programmes Relating to Forestry

Currently, the natural resources department at NRC runs diploma programmes in Land Administration, Irrigation and Environmental Management. Under the latter, there are 30 contact hours on Agroforestry, 90 contact hours on Sustainable Forest Management and 30 contact hours in Community–based Natural Resources Manage-ment. These courses include practical hours where the students contact and work with local communities. The whole area of environmental management is manned by two lecturers supported by several locally-outsourced short term lecturers. In delivering its programmes, NRC emphasizes the integration of agricultural, environmental and nat-ural resources management in development programmes. Poverty reduction and household food security are key to this approach. Food security education is provided under the Department of Agriculture’s Food and Nutrition programme in a course en-titled “Food, Nutrition and Livelihood Securities”.

The structure of programmes and staffing are captured in Table 3.

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Table 3: Structure of programmes and staff at NRCNatural Resources College

Qualifications Department of Agricul-ture

Department of Nat-ural Resources

3-year diploma pro-grammes. Entry re-quirements ‘O’ level qualifications(NB: Certificate pro-grammes are being phased out)

Agriculture and Rural Development

Food and Nutrition Horticulture Agricultural Education Animal Health and Pro-

duction

Land Administra-tion

Irrigation Environmental

Management(Agroforestry, Sustainable forest Manage-ment, CB NRM included)

Academic staff: 24 with Masters degrees; 8 with Bachelor degrees and 9 with diploma qualifications.

4.4.2 Graduate employment

The key employers of graduates of the Environment Management Programme are;

The Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security Parks and Wildlife Department Ministry and companies involved in energy and mining Urban authorities (specially seeking waste management expertise) It is important to note here that the Forestry Department in the Ministry of Natural

Resources, Energy and Mining is not mentioned as an employer of the graduates of NRC. There is therefore a need to seek some sort of synergy as their expertise is relevant and complementary to forestry.

4.5 Stakeholders Perceptive on the Importance of Forestry Education

Various stakeholders within and outside the forestry sector were consulted on how they perceive the forestry profession and gaps in expertise.

4.5.1 Forest Department MNREM

The department supports the integrative view of forestry, especially the links with in-dustry, agriculture (especially food security) and reinforcing community based forest management.

The department is fully aware of and involved in the forestry education developments at LUANAR and MZUZU universities in addition to leading the education programmes at MCFW. It is fully aware that graduates of forestry end up doing other jobs such as teaching in secondary schools due to lack of employment opportunities in forestry. Over the last three years no graduate foresters were recruited by the ministry. Non-etheless the demand for foresters is high, especially in districts, in private companies (in both planting trees and processing wood), and especially in NGOs undertaking forestry related activities. The department also referred to tree ‘out-grower schemes’ which are emerging, especially within the tobacco industry.

The Department fully endorses the FAO/UNIDO initiative improve forestry education and especially the creation of green jobs through education and business links. The ideas of r training at vocational level in forestry was also fully supported and men-tioned as a way to curb wood wastage and enhance the economic contribution of forestry. For the management of the in-country programme the Department indicated its willingness to participate fully and also proposed the formation of a Steering Com-mittee that would involve other stakeholders.

The Forest Department recognizes the links between food security and forestry, but it admits that this link requires proper data collection. There are two major aspects: Dir -

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ect supply of food and medicines from forests and the provisioning of suitable environ-ment for sustaining agriculture. These require proper development and quantification and that would raise the profile of forestry in the country. The Department hopes that through the FAO/UNIDO project the food and nutrition aspects will be highlighted and further developed, especially in the curricula.

4.5.2 Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security

The Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security (MAFS) is very crucial for the future de-velopment of the forestry sector in Malawi and vice versa. This is true due to the fol -lowing reasons:

The vast majority of farmers are responsible for the expansion of agriculture into forest areas

The depletion of trees on farms is as crucial as deforestation because farmers lack the wood resources to meet their energy needs and are therefore compelled to encroach forests and woodlands, thereby degrading the natural systems around them

The two bullets above point to overall natural resource depletion and that is a huge threat to sustainability of agriculture

While education in sustainable agriculture is crucial, synergy and coordination of actions by forestry experts is not just important but a requisite

With the ever declining wood resources in the country, it is imperative that the MAFS takes up agroforestry as a key strategy for increasing tree cover on farm-land.

The ministry is keen on what is happening to tree and forest resources. MAFS recog-nizes that food security would be elusive if crop production and productivity are pro-moted without the concomitant attention to natural resources management (NRM). The ministry has therefore developed a guide on natural resource management prac-tices on farms (picture). The manual has 27 pages (of 336) covering forestry, Agro-forestry and beekeeping. However, the larger concepts and practices of natural re-sources management, especially regarding water, biodiversity and other ecosystem services are missing.

The MAFS has a strategy for implementing this: Efficient planting pattern (for maze 1ft apart) Effective fertilization (e.g. micro-dosing) Diversification, especially with legume crops Reforestation of catchment areas in collaboration with ESCOM and Ministries of

Lands, Natural Resources Energy and Mining. Agroforestry with tree species that are useful to farmers

The aspect of food security and nutrition from trees and forest resources is missing and the ministry admits that it should be included. It was noted that the challenge was to get proper statistics for the country showing the current state and how this contribu-tion can be enhanced. Nonetheless, the fact that trees can provide so many products during the dry seasons is a very crucial point to reinforce the need to follow up on this. Collaboration between the two sectors is crucial.

Interestingly, the Ministry has published a book entitles Guide to Agricultural Produc-tion and Natural Resources management. This is sufficient evidence that strengthen-ing the links between forestry and agriculture is quite possible in Malawi.

Another key area that is often missed concerns health products. As captured in the attached picture, medicinal herbs are an important product from trees. With the rapid disappearance of forests, some medicinal herbs are becoming rare and therefore quite expensive. Some healers have tried to raise the herbs on their land but with very limited success. In addition to taking this up at the scientific level (to determine the curative ingredients) there is a need to assist in the regeneration and planting of these

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species on farmland, in collaboration with the health and nutrition sectors.

Regarding the planting of trees on farms (in whatever configuration) it was noted that there are no clear benchmarks, so it is difficult to establish how well this is being done. Foremost, it is not just the planting; we have to deal with survival rates and manage-ment of the trees to achieve the objectives. Additionally, we have to set standards to be achieved in terms of tree cover or tree population per unit of land (hectare). This way each village or community will be able to assess and report its success. Another good measure is also the ability to achieve self-sufficiency in tree products.

It was noted that with the rapid growth rate of the rural population in Malawi, soon the land parcels will be far too small to sustain families. A foresight study is needed to develop possible models for future farming in Malawi.

Regarding Agricultural education, the MAFS controls three technical colleges respect-ively undertaking certificate and diploma course in fisheries, Livestock management and crop production (including NRM and environment) Recently the Natural Re-sources College (NRC) was transformed into a constituent college of LUANAR. This means that future diploma holders will be produced by LUANAR. MAFS had already dropped certificate training as they deem it to be too low to solve the complex farming and NRM problems faced by farmers. So the plan is to have diploma holders as ex-tension staff at the lowest level. However, this move is facing challenges as the dip-loma graduates feel they deserve to work at higher levels and shy away from rural settings. Further, they are eligible to upgrade to degree programmes and that could deal a big blow to the technical level expertise in the country.

4.5.3 Ministry of Education – Higher Education Directorate

The Ministry participates in institutional development and management of education programmes through its representation on the boards, senates and councils. The overall accreditation and quality assurance are managed by the National Council for Higher Education (NCHE). For university education the government has a policy on cost sharing arrangements and policy implemented through the Loans and Grants Board. However, the Higher Education Directorate usually plays no direct roles in the establishment and management of technical education under specific ministries, for instance the management of NRC and MCFW.

The Directorate is aware that at university level, not all students are able to secure their first choices of courses they want to pursue. They explain this as arising from limitations on the places available within the faculties usually controlled by the need to maintain high standards. Thus it is quite understandable that some students studying forestry had not selected that discipline, and some of them try to transfer to other courses when opportunities arise. The directorate pointed out that this phenomenon was not unique to forestry. They further explained that in the case of forestry, part of the problem lies in the lack of information at secondary school level. Few secondary school students would know about forestry as much as they know on engineering,

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Photo 3 Herbal medicine man at a roadside in Lilongwe

medicine etc. The Directorate advises that the Forest Department and the universities teaching forestry should visit secondary schools and inform/sensitize students of the forestry profession and what it entails. Other ways of doing this are through radio, tele-vision, newspapers brochures and fliers. ‘Without such action the general public un-derstand forestry as simply protection of forests against encroachment! Parents also need to know what careers can be pursued in forestry’.

The ministry is aware of re-greening efforts and also climate change (REDD+) pro-grammes. However they pointed out that the key area needing attention is wood en-ergy. With access to electricity at only 10% wood energy remains as the main source and unless more trees are planted the landscape will continue to degrade. Efforts to bring in alternative sources (solar, biogas, gas) are recognized but the impact so far is quite limited.

On learning about the Kenya approach to tree planting where all farmers are required by law to attain at least 10% tree cover on their land, the Directorate agrees that such a rule can work. However that is the role of foresters and politicians to reach some form of agreement, after appropriate consultations with local communities.

The directorate understands the general picture that there are far too few foresters at the local community level to drive tree planting and NRM. However, they pointed out that LUANAR and Mzuzu are producing foresters who are not finding jobs within the relevant ministry. So some form of training needs assessment is essential.

Regarding the planned FAO/UNIDO programme, the Directorate of Higher education is supportive and is interested particularly to see how the improved curricula can raise relevance of forestry and agricultural graduates as well as popularization of forestry as a good professional area for the youth.

4.5.4 Ministry Lands Housing and Urban Development and UNDP

The United Nations Development programme (UNDP) has a collaborative arrange-ment with the Ministry of Lands Housing and Urban Development in which sustainable land management features prominently. A recent project on payment for ecosystem services and community- based natural forest regeneration by local communities was implemented in four districts (Blantyre, Balaka, Neno and Mwanza) in Mid Shire. Alto-gether, an area equivalent to about 100,000 hectares was covered. The project also involved local NGOs and it applied traditional structures (chieftainships) and concen-trated on customary lands and public forest reserve areas. Full mapping of all lands involved was undertaken and there was effective coordination with the Forest Depart-ment and the district authorities. The experience revealed that challenges to regenera-tion are:

Bush fires which destroy young wildings during the dry seasons Animal grazing and browsing Continued harvesting of wood for energy purposes

However positive experiences were recorded regarding the effectiveness of applying local knowledge, using traditional /existing leadership and the need for coordination across sub-sectors and institutions especially education, research, governance and local community authorities.

UNDP has also supported a review of Malawi policies and regulations on charcoal production and use, with the goal of finding a sustainable arrangement for this energy source (Mutimba and Kamoto 2013). This study is closely linked to the sustainable land management and the contribution of the forestry sector to GDP. With only 9% of the population having reliable connectivity to electricity, the vast population of Malawians rely on wood energy. It is interesting to note that even those currently con-nected to electricity still use charcoal for cooking because of the unreliability of power supplies and also costs.

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The UNDP study reveals that the demand for charcoal exceeds the supply, and char -coal contributes 6.1% of the GDP. However, there is inefficiency in both the production and in the utilization of charcoal. Besides, charcoal producers prefer the dense wood species for their high calorific value. These are slow growing, scarce and in time they may disappear. Further, despite the big business involved, charcoal production re-mains entirely managed at individual levels and in the form of huge number of very small scale operators. These are also least educated and apply only traditional earth kilns which are highly inefficient. The waste losses are yet to be estimated.

These points to the need for formalizing training in the generation of local forest re-sources and also in the management of charcoal production (to improve efficiency) and also in developing and promoting the use of charcoal and firewood stoves. Collab-oration among the ministries responsible or energy, health, forestry and environment is essential, but proper private sector engagement and a clean business environment is essential. The use of efficient kilns and streamlining of the charcoal and firewood business can pay dividends in both saving forests and improving environment and health. Vocational training in this area is indispensable and should cover inter alia regenera-tion and planting of fuelwood species, tree management, efficient harvesting and chopping of wood, carbonization processes and equipment, different energy products, packing and transportation, marketing, making efficient charcoal and firewood stoves and sustainable woodfuel management. Total Land Care (TLC – an NGO) is already working of firewood stoves and is interested in partnership for developments in this area. UNDP and the ministry of lands are interested in such programmes and would cooperate with FAO/UNIDO.

4.5.5 Ministry of Economic Planning and Development

The ministry is aware of analysis done by the Ministry of Natural Resources, Energy and Mining on the sustainable natural resources management in Malawi with respect to soils, fisheries, forestry and wildlife. The report can be found onhttp://www.nccpmw.org/index.php/documentation/cat_view/4-state-of-environment-and-outlook.

It is clear from the analysis that the country seriously underestimates the contributions of forestry to economic and social development. The main challenge is the lack of con-crete data. The ministry noted that cross-sectoral linkages are lacking, making it diffi-cult for other sectors to know exactly how they can contribute to forestry development through the Forest Departments “Forest Funds”.

Regarding food security it was noted that overall; the production of non-wood forest products (NWFP) is a hand-to mouth approach undertaken at the household level and therefore does not get into the national accounts, especially because there are no tools for monitoring it. This also affects sustainability of the supplies of such products because they are not planned. There is a need for the forest department to undertake a systematic inventory and valuation of these products so as to enable their account-ing in the national statistics. Additionally, value adding through processing of these products would create rural jobs in addition to making significant contributions to the local and national economic development.

The ministry supports the efforts of FAO and UNIDO to develop a forestry support pro-gramme and emphasizes economic activities at the community level when considering Community forestry and food security. There is special interest to ‘industrialize’ some of the forest and tree products and create green jobs for the youth.

4.5.6 Total Landcare (TLC)

Total Landcare is an NGO established in 1999 and was initially based on agroforestry and soil conservation projects supported by USAID. Currently it has multi-donor pro-

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grammes in agriculture, forestry and agroforestry supported by among others, DFID, IFAD, EU, Global Environmental Fund (GEF- US based) and NORAD. It has pres-ence and activities in 24 of the 28 districts of Malawi. There are 4 zonal offices (led by zonal coordinators) that support activities in each district. Below each district there are Extension Planning Areas (EPAs) that are used in managing activities. The NGO has activities in Tanzania, Mozambique, Zimbabwe and Malawi, in the following areas:

Agriculture: Agroforestry, conservation agriculture, irrigation and crop diversifica-tion

Forestry: Natural resources management, farmer-managed natural regeneration of trees, efficient cook stoves, tree planting, woodlot development.

Recent work in Malawi shows that improved firewood cooking stoves can reduce wood consumption by up to 60%! This is usually accompanied by kitchen improve-ments. In its tree planting activities Total Landcare has worked with farmers to agree on suitable species especially Faidherbia albida, Senna spectabilis, Senna siamea, Albizia spp, Khaya nyasica, and Afzelia quanzensis. The planting objectives include production of firewood, building materials, tobacco curing and overall nature conserva-tion.

In addition to above activities TLC has agreement with Forest Department’s Viphya Authority to manage some 2,600 ha of forest area, of which already 1000ha are planted. GEF is planning to invest generously in this project. TLC is showing by prac-tical examples the need for multi-sectoral approaches in natural resources manage-ment and conservation. On community forestry TLC believes that any activities must be led by the communities themselves, and the system should be kept simple.

TLC is a very interesting organization that can be considered as a close partner in the planned FAO/UNIDO programme. The common areas of interest are Community based NRM activities, and the vocational training specially targeted at developing skills in silvicultural operations, logging, sawmilling, timber seasoning timber treatment and efficient wood utilization. TLC Executive Director expressed interest to engage with FAO and UNIDO on any of these areas.

4.5.7 Concern Universal (CU)

This NGO has forestry and natural resources management as one of its favourite pro-grammes. They have undertaken a study on culture and forestry in Malawi, where they analysed the socio-cultural factors that influence community forestry manage-ment. The study results point to lack of synergy between the perspectives of forestry authorities and those of the local communities regarding tenure rights, decision mak-ing on management and utilization of community forests. A parallel administrative structure established by Forest Department seemed to counter hierarchy and tradi-tions applied by the local communities, thereby confusing the lines of command. This opens opportunities for individuals to freely access the forests and carry out harvest-ing activities. Currently tree tenure is at the mercy of the farmer, so degradation of communal lands continues.

According to the CU, understaffing and weak logistical support (especially transport and funds to cover related expenses) in forestry results in weak presence in many parts of the country. This shortfall affects the quality and availability of oversight in community forestry activities. Concern Universal believes that there is a need to re-view the rules for community forestry management in collaboration with local com-munities – in fact the local communities should be setting, owning and supervising the implementation of the rules with the technical support of the Forest Department. CU suggests that the forest policy also be reviewed to give greater emphasis on Com-munity Forestry and Agroforestry.

Agricultural sustainability is threatened as ground water resources diminish and cli -mate change adds to the productivity challenges. Further exposure of the land can

27

lead to more serious food security challenges. Forestry capacity at all levels must be raised and enabled to reverse this situation.

Concern Universal is interested to partner with FAO and UNIDO in all aspects relating to its mandate in Malawi.

4.5.8 Wood-Based Industries

Three wood-based enterprises in Lilongwe were visited to explore the human and in-stitutional capacity and training needs, focusing on the on- managerial positions and especially vocational level skills. The following points were observed:

In two of the three firms visited, the work environment was poorly organized and congested raising safety as well as efficiency challenges

The equipment in use was quite old and lacking in some essential gears. For in-stance, a couple of sawmills were missing the log holding and guiding equipment meaning that workers had to hold the logs/cants with their bare hands as they were ripped through the circular saws. Circular saws are quite popular and used even where band saws would do a better job and also raise recovery.

While workers did their best with limited facilities, it was clear that they lack the basic training in milling and timber management; as a result the sawn wood quality was affected, especially regarding consistency of size. A plank could have quite varying dimensions from one end to the other. This creates a seasoning problem and also adds to wastes, especially when planing the planks to produce furniture or joinery.

Overall, workers were not wearing any safety gears such as boots, helmets, ap-propriate overalls or eye protection equipment

The sawn wood was haphazardly stacked, affecting the quality of seasoning.

It is important to note that these observations are focused on the areas requiring im-provement, and do not necessarily imply any inefficiency elsewhere in the overall management structure or the effectiveness/profitability of the business enterprises. Despite the challenges listed above, there was no problem at all in selling any of the products of the mills, so there seemed to be no real incentive to improve quality as the demand for sawn wood is currently insatiable.

Discussions with management did not produce much guidance on the training needs. In one case the management suggested that he would ask workers on what form of training they might need. Asked if they would be ready to finance training that would improve efficiency and profitability, they were hedgy, indicating that it would depend on the training costs. Nonetheless, they did agree on the need for skills improvement.

Regarding the quality of logs there was consensus that the overall quality was poor due to the following challenges:

Inadequate silvicultural treatments, especially pruning and thinning, leading to poor stem forms with many knots

Wastage in harvesting operations, where the stumps were cut quite high (some-times up to one meter), which indicates that the logging crews are not skilled

Sub-optimal bucking to produce the logs Inefficient mills Inappropriate stacking and seasoning

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Photo 4 In appropriate harvesting

Photo 5 In appropriate timber seasoning

Consultations with forestry experts indicated that these observations are also true elsewhere in the forest plantations. They indicate challenges in supervision, resources allocation and possible lack of skills. The overall conclusion in the area of wood har-vesting and processing is that improvements are needed in equipment standards, skills of workers at the vocational level, especially in logging, mill processing, season-ing, treatment of timber and carpentry. Huge recovery gains are likely to accrue from vocational level training, and green jobs will be generated.

4.5.9 Private Sector Perspectives

It was not easy to reach out to the private sector, but participants present at the na-tional workshop organized by FAO and UNIDO from 22nd to 23rd June responded to a questionnaire that was circulated. They opined as follows (highly summarized):

On raw materials for sawmilling and other panel products:

The greatest concern is the likelihood of major declines in raw material availability due to depletion of existing forests.

With regard to saw logs and processing:

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The quality of logs is low partly because the trees did not receive appropriate silvicul -tural operations (especially pruning and thinning) and partly due to poor skills in the harvesting and transportation of logs. It was quite clear that this played a role in the low recovery rates at sawmills. Another contributing factor was low skill levels of saw-milling crews. Logging and sawmilling crews would benefit from training, and the mill managers would be interested in supporting such training.

Wood product business: While the prices of timber seem to be favourable for busi-ness, saw millers agree that the quality requires improvement. Quite often the timber is sold without proper seasoning (largely due to the huge demand for it) but also the timber dimensions are inconsistent. The whole area of precision cutting and sizing is affected by poor skills in sawmilling and also poorly maintained milling equipment. Although there were no statistics on recovery rates, everyone agreed that significant gains would be made if maintenance and training are attended to.

4.5.10 Stakeholder opinion on skills of forest industry workers

In the following charts, we share analyses of how stakeholders scored on various questions regarding forestry, with a special focus on education, industrial skills and forest foods in Malawi. The columns show the total number of responses on the ques-tions presented on the topic. The full results are presented in Annex 4

Figure 8 Stakeholders perspective on commitment to Community Forestry

While community forests are quite important, investment in their development is quite limited. It was the view of many stakeholders that the future supply of tree products in Malawi is in from Community Forestry and Agroforestry. Thus more investment should be done in these areas.

Figure 9 Stakeholders' perspective on current formal recognition of forest food

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None Low Moderate High Very High0

10

20

30

40

50

60

14

44

56

2924

Stakeholders' scores

None Low Moderate High Very high024

68

101214

1618

20

9

18

12

4 4

Stakholders' scores

On whether there is a formal recognition and investments in forest foods: Figure 9 provides the clear response that this is not the case. There is a need for greater sens-itization, formalization and a business approach.

Figure 10 Stakeholder perspectives on efficiency in use of wood

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Poor Fair Good Very good Excellent0

2

4

6

8

10

12

14

16

7

14

12 12

5

Stakeholders' scores

Regarding how stakeholders view efficiency in the use of wood in Malawi, the data shows that opinion is divided. It is fair to say that overall there is much room for im-provement.

Figure 11 Stakeholders' perspectives on availabil-ity of industrial skills

On availability and adequacy of the right human capacity for industrial operations, a strong message here is that there is a demand for improvement of industrial skills. This means that additional training is needed.

Figure 12 Stakeholders' perspectives on the need for vocational training in forestry

As figure 12 demonstrates, the demand for vocational level training is overwhelming. This reinforces the data in figure 10 which confirms the need for industrial skills.

4.5.11 Stakeholder opinion on forestry education as a whole (for full results see Annex 4)

The following two charts present what stakeholders think about current forestry educa-tion and the need to improve it.

Figure 13 Stakeholders' perspective on quality and adequacy of

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None Little Moderate High Very high0

2

4

6

8

10

12

14

3

0

2

4

13Stakeholders'scores

Poor Fair Good Very good Excellent0

5

10

15

20

25 23

10

13

9

5

Stakeholders'scores

Poor Fair Good Very good

Excellent02468

101214 12

810

5 5

Stakeholders'scores

current forestry educationOn adequacy of current forestry education dispensation: A strong indication on the need for improvements in delivery as well as content. Stakeholders, some of whom are potential employers of graduates consider the current forestry education .as largely inadequate. This should be read together with figure 13 below which strongly indicates the need to improve forestry education.

Figure 14 Stakeholders' perspective on the need to improve forestry education

Stakeholder opinion on the role of forests in food security and nutrition

Stakeholders were asked to score on how important forest food is in contouring to Malawi’s food security and nutrition: A strong recognition of this as important is indic-ated in figure 13. However, stakeholders indicated that statistics need to be compiled on the volume and value of contributions from forests

None Low Moderate High Very high0

2

4

6

8

10

12

14

16

18

20

1

56

8

18Stakeholders'scores

Figure 15 Stakeholders' perspective on the importance of forest foods

. The full list of persons met is show in Annex 5. The following list of comments was made by respondents illustrating further on the scores.

4.5.12 Stakeholder Comments/Suggestions on Forestry Education:

The following comments and recommendations were taken verbatim from the ques-tionnaires responses filled in by stakeholders. They have been fine-tuned and in-cluded under conclusions and recommendations.

Relating to education:

Strengthen collaboration among all training and education institutions in forestry Private sector involvement in forestry education be actively pursued

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None Little Moderate High Very high0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

95 5

9

31Satkeholders scores

Assess the training needs of trainers/educators and enhance their capacity All training institutions should be assessed Enhance research and outreach in all training Strengthen practicum at all levels Improve training facilities Enhance agroforestry training There is a need to review the forestry sector training needs: Establish sector Advis-

ory Committee? The need for a well-rounded forestry graduates in prime Enhance multi-stakeholder involvement in curricula and in training Undertake tracer study to evaluate the performance of graduates Expand current technical training to include industrial training. No need for a new

school. Training institutions should be equipped with training forests

Relating to forest industries:

There is a need to reinforce wood/timber standards Industry should express their skills needs Mind-set changes are needed to address cross cutting issues Establish and strengthen links between schools and industry for mutual support

4.6 Food Security

With low birth weight at 12.3% and under five years stunting at 47.8%, in 2011 Malawi established a National Nutrition Committee, chaired by the Secretary for Nutrition, HIV and AIDS in the Office of the President. The committee mobilises resources to support the implementation of interventions in line with the countries Food and Nutrition Secur-ity Policy of 2005 and the National Nutrition Policy and Strategic Plan (2007 – 2015). The programme is focused on community-based action. Lilongwe University of Agri-culture and Natural Resources (LUANAR) is supporting capacity building initiatives for scaling up nutrition. This opens the space for the forestry sector to make its contribu-tion. Owing to its importance, food and nutrition security ought to be incorporated into the forestry curriculum.

5. CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS

In the following sections, emphasis is placed on reform of forestry education, enhan-cing the roles of the private sector and community forestry and food security as the cornerstones for the future of forestry development in Malawi. Innovations in research, fund raising and regional cooperation are considered as essential and antecedent to forestry learning and practice. Although the recommendations are grouped into six main areas, they are interrelated and therefore the boundaries are not quite distinct. The six areas are:

Strengthening forestry education and training Cross institutional coordination of forestry education PPDP for efficiency and profitable forestry (including vocational training) Community forestry and food security Research and entrepreneurship development Regional collaboration

Strengthening forestry education and training

Building the appropriate human resource capacity in forestry is the most critical aspect of forestry development. Ideally this begins with a proper survey on the needs at differ-ent levels, all the way from skilled workers to professionals. In this survey, no data were found on comprehensive human resource planning in forestry. Some information was available on the public sector, but even that was out of date in relation to actual realities on the ground. With respect to the needs in the private sector, community forestry and NGOs there are no data.

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Recommendation 1: A comprehensive human resource development plan is needed as a basis for investment in education and training in forestry.

The current teaching institutions are facing major challenges to maintain high stand-ards due to shortfalls in human capacity, equipment and overall training budgets. In table 4, targeted recommendations and targeted actions have been proposed.

Table 4: Targeted recommendations for education and training institutionsMain conclusion/s Targeted Recommenda-

tionsProposed actions and by who

On human resources capacityFor quality assurance, es-tablished staffing levels need to be attained and maintained

Accelerate staff recruitment to fill academic gaps and take staff retention measures

Allocate more resources and motivate staff. Forestry De-partment at LUANAR and MCFW

There are no working ar-rangements to upgrade the skills of educators

There is a need to regularly expose educators to wide range of experiences inside and outside the country

Budget for staff training.Take advantage of projects (e.g. FAO/UNIDO project and others)

On forestry curriculum contentThe contents on Community Forestry, Food security and nutrition and Forest Product Enterprises are inadequate

Expand the curricula and syllabi to accommodate new thinking in Community based forestry, Forest food and Entrepreneurship

Review curricula and syllabi. Consider proposals included in this reportAll forestry teaching institu-tions

Dropping the certificate training level expands the skills gap at operational level and denies the country the much needed industrial skills

There is need to establish vocational level training in forestry to support industrial development. Consider private sector funding

LUANAR through NRC works with TEVETA to establish a self-sustaining vocational training facility. FAO and especially UNIDO to assist. Private sector to be involved.

On Learning resourcesCurrently available learning resources are limited and often not contextualized in local conditions

Support educators to de-velop and adapt learning materials.Expand access to internet resources

FAO project support to de-velop compendia, and to improve connectivity. Teach-ing institutions to allocate more resources for this

Field training resources are too limited to provide the required effect. Laboratories are poorly equipped.

Review the whole area of field and laboratory training to ensure that minimum standards are established. Facilities can be used for research and also support private sector.

Education managers to de-velop list of needs. FAO pro-ject to consider matching support to top up institutional commitments. Involve private sector and research (FRIM)

5.1 Cross institutional coordination of forestry education

Currently there are two universities (LUANAR and MU) teaching forestry at degree and postgraduate level and one college (MCFW) producing technicians in forestry. LUANAR also teaches Agroforestry at degree and postgraduate level. This situation creates unnecessary competition for students despite the fact that credible job oppor-tunities for forestry graduates are currently scarce. MCFW is primarily aimed at pro-ducing diploma holders for Forestry Department (for public service). Certificate courses which were managed by MCFW have been terminated. Vocational training is completely missing. MCFW closes frequently due to lack of funds. Teaching capacity in all the institutions needs upgrading and overall teaching facilities (laboratories, equipment) are wanting. Forestry is little known for pre-university students.

Recommendation 2: Serious consideration should be given to coordinating the pro-fessional forestry education programmes at LUANAR and MU to enable some form of

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specialization so that the two universities complement each other. For example, one could teach wood science and technology while the other does forestry and agro-forestry. Recommendation 3: Subject to decisions made on recommendation 2, there is a need to raise the faculty establishment level substantially. However, the generally accepted staff/student ratio of 1/9 should be considered and this should be sufficient ground for a national debate of the real demand for forestry graduates.

Recommendation 4: There is a need to sensitize students at secondary schools on forestry so that they understand the profession when enrolling for university education. This will reduce migration to other degree programmes after admission into forestry.

Recommendation 5: There is a need for support to equip the teaching institutions with laboratory and field training gear for student practicum. The FAO/UNIDO pro-gramme needs to consider this after assessing the specific needs.

Recommendation 6: It is proposed that the Forest Department reviews the mandate of MCFW to include producing technicians to serve the private sector, NGOs and other interested organizations. If agreed, there will be a need to develop an education-business model for MCFW so the college can generate funds using its current facilit-ies, with possible support to revamp some of the facilities and supply equipment from the FAO/UNIDO programme.

Plans are already in place to incorporate NRC into LUANAR as a constituent college. This provides excellent opportunities for the Forestry Department and the whole fac-ulty of Natural Resources at LUANAR to better utilize the expanded space and capa-city at NRC campus. A thorough restructuring of teaching programmes, research and outreach would be beneficial to both institutions.

Recommendation 7: It is therefore proposed that among other things, the FAO/UNIDO programme being developed assists in the restructuring process to ensure an effective institutional setting that will deliver on forestry for Malawi.

This recommendation has been included as an objective and activity on the proposed FAO/UNIDO programme for Malawi. It is important to recognize that the Government of Malawi is already implementing this decision, so the FAO/UNIDO roles are limited to technical advice and synergy to ensure that the support for forestry education is well structured and effective.

Table 5: Targeted recommendations on forestry education coordinationMain conclusion/s Targeted Recommendations Proposed actions and

by who

iv) On inter-institutional complementarityWith the two forestry degree programmes at Mzuzu University and LUANAR, Malawi’s capa-city at this level exceeds the country’s needs

Some specialization will open up more job opportunities and raise value for the investment. Options include Commercial forestry and Community forestry with Agro-forestry

The two universities and the Directorate of Higher Education can work out suitable collaborative ar-rangements

The diploma level train-ing capacity at MCFW is adequate if it is fully op-erational

Many diploma holders are interested to upgrade to degree-level training

Urgent measures are needed to find appropriate mechanism to facil-itate funding of the college so it can function all year round

There is a need to ensure that the required number of technicians (according to manpower planning) is maintained

Forest Department may wish to consider opening up for privately sponsored students and also fund raising and income gener-ating activities

FD and other key stake-holders in forestry need to monitor and control this

5.2 Public Private Development Partnership for Efficient and Profitable Forestry

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Currently there is very limited involvement of the private sector in forestry education. The private sector is represented on the board of MCFW and to some extent in the development of curricula at Mzuzu University and LUANAR. Depending on availability of resources, students are welcome to visit private forestry initiatives. However, as mentioned earlier, lack of resources has severely limited field practical training. From this survey, the following partnership opportunities were identified and are recommen-ded:

Privately sponsored students and programmes

At both colleges (MCFW and NRC) and universities there are opportunities for the private sector to sponsor students through payment of fees. The private sector may also provide support for specific research programmes where they can benefit from the results. For this to happen, the teaching institutions need to meet with the private sector and make mutually beneficial plans. Student internships can be built in. Ex-amples and models on this are already operational in South Africa.

Engaging in curriculum development/reviews and practicum

Private sector should be seen as one of the key employers of graduates at all levels and especially vocational and technical graduates. Therefore it is essential to establish mechanisms for private sector to contribute to learning processes, especially in defin-ing the knowledge and skills graduates should have and by opening their facilities for use by students in practical exercises and in internships.

Providing opportunities for special studies and research

At undergraduate and postgraduate levels, the students undertake special project studies and thesis research respectively. There is a need for the students to solve real problems in forestry business. Each year, the private sector can produce a list of prob-lem areas that require analysis or research. The students would select research topics from such a list. This will have mutual improvement effects.

Guest lectures from private sector/business

Opportunities should be created for experienced managers and senior staff to give seminars at the universities and colleges as a way of sharing their experiences and promoting specific areas of business such as biomass energy development. Vocational training for industrial skills

The demand for vocational training was strongly indicated by forestry stakeholders. Given that most forest industries are privately owned and managed, it would make economic sense for vocational trainees to be privately sponsored. The public institu-tions already exist and are underutilized. It is recommended that NRC be used to de-velop and implement vocational forestry training, with TEVETA oversight and UNIDO technical support. Students can be supported by private sector, parents/guardians and government. This idea is further developed in the FAO-UNIDO programme proposal for Malawi (see annex 2). This action will definitely promote green jobs for Malawi.

Sponsorship of short training courses

Some workers and foresters only need honing of their current skills. This can be achieved in short courses of up to three months. This area is particularly important as it will quickly improve worker productivity and efficiency. The Private sector will benefit greatly by supporting their workers to attend such course. The survey clearly identified this need.

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Recommendation 8: Forestry education leaders should pursue stronger engagement with private sector in all the areas identified above

Recommendation 9: There is a need to establish vocational training facilities in the country to produce the skilled workers and technicians needed as work force for tree product industries. TEVETA can provide registration and quality assurance support for this. The FAO/UNIDO programme should give this a high priority. The NRC is attract-ive as a host for such training.

5.3 Community Forestry and Food Security

The survey shows that community forestry is well recognized by forest policy and guidelines have been developed for its implementation. However there are practical challenges regarding the best approaches for achieving sustainable results. The guidelines cover both customary estates and public forest reserves. They establish new structures that seem to be parallel with the existing traditional authorities. This could in part be the reason why the survey shows that implementation of community forestry requires a review. In other words the way community forestry is understood at all scales (from the local communities to central government level) may not be very clear. Participatory forest management (PFM), which usually means including local community voices and actions in the management of public forests, ought to be clearly distinguished from the management of community forests on customary land. In the case of the latter, forestry expertise is made available for the community to apply. Overall, community forestry and agroforestry need to be better funded as they are the foundation for a future green economy in Malawi.

The roles of NGOs and private sector in community forestry seem to require clarifica-tion. NGOs in particular are involved in the regenerating and planting of trees in Malawi. Their full engagement in supporting CF management is therefore crucial. Private sector within and outside the communities will play a key role in making tree products and services from community forests marketable and profitable, through the development of value chains. .Recommendation 10: There is a need to fine tune the Community Forestry policy and guidelines to meet community needs and values. In particular, incorporate the social and cultural considerations and explore ways of blending that with modern ap-proaches to forest management.

Regarding education on community forestry, the survey results demonstrate quite clearly that the training and especially the practicum is weak across all institutions. The training capacity in terms of human resources is adequate but capacity building for the lecturers is needed. This can be achieved through a combination of short courses, workshops and exposure to practical community forests projects in the SADC region. Further, there is a need to deepen the forestry curriculum, especially to strengthen social and cultural components. The main textbook used in all forestry training and education institutions is ‘Standards and Guidelines for Participatory Forestry in Malawi’. As pointed out earlier in this report, and also in the report from the Ministry of planning and UNDP, the application of these standards is facing some challenges.

Recommendation 11: Develop and implement a special programme to capacitate lecturers at all forests education institutions on Community Forestry and agroforestry as key areas of future forestry development

Recommendation 12: Review the Community Forestry curriculum and develop con-textualized learning materials, drawing from examples in other SADC countries

Recommendation 13: Strengthen the roles of NGOs and especially private sector in the development of tree resources and value chains

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The principle should be to put more responsibility and authority in local communities and provide them effective technical and professional guidance.

Food security and nutrition

Forests can contribute effectively to all the four dimensions of food security and nutri -tion as briefly captured hereunder:

Direct contributions to the availability of food can be achieved through better man-agement of wild fruits and nuts, bush meat, mushrooms, honey, edible worms, spices, among others. Accessibility to forest food includes the rights of different social groups and individuals to enter forests harvest and utilize forest food products, or buy same from vendors. For Malawi this is particularly important because some of the forest foods are already sold in local markets. Prices are relatively high due to the dwindling sources. Utilization of food is enhanced by the availability of water and wood fuel (for cooking). These essential inputs require sustainable management of forest resources. Sustainability of food supplies whether from forests or from agricul-tural landscapes depend on the ecological integrity of forest resources and their influ-ence on soil stability/fertility, weather and climate change.

The big question for Malawi is: What should forestry graduates need to know about forestry and food/nutritional security? At both technical and professional level the fol -lowing aspects need to be included in teaching:

The contributions of agroforestry to food and nutrition and how to enhance it. Best species that should be domesticated for food and nutrition Within forests, the species and ecosystems (ecotones) that produce human foods

in the different seasons of the year, and longer time cycles The best approaches to forest management to enhance production of the natural

foods Effective food harvesting strategies to enhance quality, safety and value Niche markets locally, regionally and internationally The contributions of forestry-sector income to increased access to food (improved

purchasing power) How to sustainably manage and use fuelwood and charcoal for cooking and water

sterilization for improved food utilization How to support local communities in the production, management, value adding

and marketing of the products. Forging links with the agricultural sector and especially industry to promote forest

foods Student research on forest foods.

There are opportunities here for foresters to engage with experts in food science, but there are also possibilities for foresters to train in areas such as: Food handling: meth-ods and techniques used to transform raw ingredients into food for human consump-tion meeting taste, quality, nutrition, safety, economy as desired by consumers. This includes the processing, storage and packaging of foods. This will also cover trans-portation, mechanical processing and separations, evaporation, dehydration, and thermal processing; Health Foods: Diet Analysis, dietary guidelines, limits for diet components such as saturated fat, cholesterol, sodium etc.

Recommendation 14: Strengthen forest the food and nutrition content in forestry cur-ricula at technical and professional levels

Recommendation 15: Equip and financially support laboratories and research facilit-ies to do more work on forest foods and link with industrial developments in food pro-cessing. This must include setting industrial processing standards.

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5.4 Research and Entrepreneurship in Forestry

The Forest Research Institute of Malawi (FRIM) is the lead institution in forest re-search. However, there is a lot of capacity for forest research within LUANAR and MU, especially in the form of special projects for undergraduates and thesis research for graduate students. This capacity can be deployed to provide responses to a com-monly agreed research agenda for Malawi. There are added benefits as the academia and researchers will better interact and share their knowledge and skills. Within this arrangement, student research can be directed to lead to enterprise development. This way, the students will be working on topics that are possibly their future business areas and the assessments should include such a criterion. This helps to build busi-ness skills and attitude among the graduates.

Recommendation 14: There is a need to forge research links between FRIM and the universities so as to enable student research to respond to priority research questions for Malawi.

5.5 Regional Collaboration

Within the SADC countries and elsewhere in Africa there are interesting experiences and expertise that can be utilized in Malawi. Within SADC there are experienced forestry schools and technical colleges in Mozambique, Madagascar, South Africa, Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe. Eastern Africa is within easy reach and there are strong experiences in Ethiopia, Kenya, Sudan and Uganda. These countries provide opportunities for peer reviews and also for benchmarking Malawi’s forestry education. There are lots of useful teaching and learning materials. There are also opportunities for faculty and student exchanges.

In the seventies and eighties there was established an Advisory Committee on Forestry Education in Eastern and Southern Africa, hosted by Sokoine University of Agriculture in Tanzania. That committee became non-operational in the nineties largely due to lack of resources to support its activities. There is a need to explore re-activation of that committee through the FAO/UNIDO project. FAO has a solid experi-ence in this as it hosted the global Advisory Committee on Forestry Education (ACFE) from 1966 to 1997. Within SADC, there is a forestry sector coordination office based in Gaborone. Working with that office, and the African Forestry and Wildlife Commission (due to hold its next meeting in February 2016 (in Arusha Tanzania)), it is opportune to consider a mechanism for strengthening collaboration in forestry education and re-search.

Recommendation 15: There is a need for Malawi to strengthen/develop concrete education and research collaboration activities with Eastern and Southern African countries.

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6. REFERENCES

Akinnifesi FK, Leakey RRB, Ajayi OC, Sileshi G, Tchoundjeu Z, Matakala P, Kwesiga FR 2008. Indigenous Fruit trees in the Tropics: Domestication, Utilization and Com-mercialization. CABI International.

Concern Universal 2014. Culture and Forests in Malawi: The sociocultural factors that influence community forest management. Concern Universal, Malawi. Blantyre pp 41 FAO 2011. Forests for Improved Nutrition and Food Security. FAOI2011E/9/12.14 Rome.

FAO 2015. Southern Africa’s Forests and People: Investing in a sustainable future.The International Bank for Reconstruction 2011. Wood-based biomass development for Sub-Saharan Africa: Issues and Approaches.

Kambewa P and Utila H 2008. Malawi’s Green Gold: Challenges and opportunities for small and medium forest enterprises in reducing poverty.

Ministry of Natural Resources Energy and Environment 2010. Putting PFM into prac-tice. A Field and Lessons Manual for Participatory Forest Management in Malawi.

Ministry of Mines, Natural Resources and Environment, Malawi. 2005. Standards and guidelines for Participatory Forestry in Malawi

Mutimba S and Kamoto J 2013. Report on a consultancy to review policies and regu-lations on charcoal and how to promote a systems approach to sustainable charcoal production and use in Malawi. Unpublished UNDP report.

Mwampamba TH 2007. Has the fuelwood crisis returned? Urban charcoal consump-tion in Tanzania and its implications on future forest availability. Elsevier Vol 35 8 4221-84

Sundelin WD 2006. Community-based forestry in the developing world: Analyses from an agrarian perspective Forest Policy and Economics Volume 8, Issue 4, 386–396. Elsevier.

Temu, A.,  Rudebjer P,  Kiyiapi J  and Lierop P 2005. Forestry Education in Sub-Saharan Africa and Southeast Asia: Trends, myths and realities. Food and Agriculture organization of the United Nations. FAO Working Paper No. 3.  FAO, Rome. 34p

World Bank 2012. Establishing a green charcoal value chain in Rwanda. A feasibility study.

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Annex 1. Proposed Curriculum on Community Forestry and Food Security

PROPOSED CURRICULUM ON

COMMUNITY FORESTRY

FOR MALAWI

SEPTEMBER 2015

42

TABLE OF CONTENTS

TABLE OF CONTENTS......................................................................................................................................................................................

WHY COMMUNITY FORESTRY IS IMPORTANT FOR MALAWI......................................................................................................................

CURRICULUM OBJECTIVES............................................................................................................................................................................

IMPORTANT NOTES.....................................................................................................................................................................................

COMPETENCES TO BE DEVELOPED..............................................................................................................................................................

COMMUNITY FORESTRY TRAINING MODULES.............................................................................................................................................

Module 1: Policy and Sociocultural Setting ...................................................................................................................................................

Module 2: Forest Governance and Livelihoods.............................................................................................................................................

Module 3: Principles of Community Forestry .................................................................................................................................................

Module 4: Agroforestry ..................................................................................................................................................................................

Module 5: Biodiversity and The Environment................................................................................................................................................

Module 6: Livestock and Wildlife Management..............................................................................................................................................

Module 7: Business and Wealth Creation ...................................................................................................................................................

Module 8: Food security and nutrition 1......................................................................................................................................................

Module 9: Food and Nutritional Security 2.................................................................................................................................................

GUIDED STUDY TOPICS................................................................................................................................................................................

WHY COMMUNITY FORESTRY IS IMPORTANT FOR MALAWI

While Malawi is reported as having 33.6% of its land area as forest land, it is also known that this land area is under high pressure and undergoing deforestation and degradation. Besides, the forest distribution id the country is quite uneven, with most of the forests being located in the north, where the population is sparse. With an average population density of 162 persons per square kilometer (and much denser in the central and Southern regions of the country) the pressure on forest resources is high. Local communities depend almost entirely on wood for cooking and heating energy. The rising demand for building materials, forage and applies additional pressure on the already strained forest resources. Community forestry and agroforestry are innovations with a huge potential to address the ever increasing demand for tree products and services. Fortunately, Malawi has a tradition for local ownership and management of forests. Local communities are already engaged in forestry activities; as organized groups or as individuals. Strengthening them this will go a long way in conserving forest resources.

The mandates of the three regional offices of the forestry department in the Government of Malawi include supporting dis-tricts and local communities to plan and manage customary land forests as well and community participation in the manage-ment of these as well as state forests.

The Forest Planning and Training Division (FPTD), Forest Research Institute of Malawi (FRIM), Malawi College of Forestry and Wildlife (MCFW), Forestry Conservation and Advisory Services (FCASD), Forestry Development and Management Divi -sion (FDMD), all recognize their roles in promoting community forestry. FDMD has developed participatory forestry standards and guidelines.

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There is therefore a need to develop the capacity of current and future foresters to strengthen community forestry develop -ments. Such experts in forestry will:

enhance local community knowledge and skills in sustainable tree and forest resources management Facilitate the link between forestry and other sectors, especially agriculture (food security and nutrition), energy,

water and environment. strengthen local interest in forestry and related enterprises strengthen local ownership and management of forests and trees enhance the conservation of natural resources for future generations link local communities to like-minded institutions within the country and elsewhere for the exchange of knowledge

and experience develop expertise in global forest products and carbon markets catalyze more efficient use of tree and forest products and services

Current coverage of community forestry at schools of forestry is quite limited at both diploma and degree level. At most, this whole area is given 2 credit hours, and quite often the theory is not accompanied by substantive practical training and exposure. The current textbook is a Guide developed by the Department of Forestry, basically setting up structures and management protocols for Community based forest management. In the proposed curriculum below, the course is expanded substantially and it is recommended that teaching institutions consider raising the profile of this course given its importance in Malawi. In some countries such as India, Liberia and Sri Lanka, Community forestry is a diploma/de -gree programme by itself. The FAO/UNIDO project support for community forestry education is a window of opportunity for Malawi to realize this expansion.

CURRICULUM OBJECTIVES

This curriculum is a learning guide for students registered for forestry education at diploma or degree level in Malawi. The overall goal is to produce specialists in Community Forest Management. Therefore the curriculum balances theory with praxis to ensure both academic achievement as well as development relevance.

CURRICULUM COVERAGEThis curriculum covers all the learning processes necessary to develop the knowledge, skills and attitudes of the students so they can qualify as specialists in Community Forestry. It covers theory, praxis, seminars, experiential learning, research and project writing. The learning environment is both intra-mural and extra-mural to expose the students to various communities, thereby enhancing their practical experiences. The topics for project research or reading provide additional opportunity for the student to carry out an independent study, which will generate additional knowledge and also help to enrich this course. Graduates of this programme can be employed in the areas of policy making, planning, forest management, natural re -sources conservation and management, food security, forest insurance, rural advisory services, community and rural devel-opment, conflict resolution, among others.

Two food security and nutrition modules are included in this curriculum because the primary beneficiaries of forest foods are local communities. By including this aspect we recognize and promote the primary interest of the communities. Further, Agroforestry and entrepreneurship are added to recognize the close links between forestry, agriculture and rural livelihoods. This module is only relevant for students who are not studying for Agroforestry qualifications.

IMPORTANT NOTES

General university/college regulations apply. Decisions need to be made on modules that can be considered as compulsory and those which can be treated as elective. Further, the depth of coverage will depend on the level of the training programme, with deeper coverage expected at degree level.

It is assumed that students undertaking this course will already be familiar with principles of forest management The topics identified under each subject may be extended as the needs arise Collaboration across the disciplinary divide and different departments within the university/college is encouraged.

COMPETENCES TO BE DEVELOPED

On successful completion of this course the graduate should be able to:

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Describe the community forestry situation in Malawi and globally Analyse social and cultural aspects of communities and how they impact on SFM Identify management strategies for sustainable management of community forests Design agroforestry interventions Enumerate food and nutrition benefits from community forests and support their production and sustainable har-

vesting Understand and guide wood energy activities and projects Explain national forest policy to local communities Develop management agreements and plans and support local communities in implementing them to achieve

sustainable forest management Apply social skills in organizing people and institutions for CF development and in resolving community forest man-

agement challenges Apply participatory forestry management tools in processes such as PRA. Evaluate situations and advise on community forest management actions Lead forest resource assessment in a community forest environment Establish and operationalize local innovation platforms

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COMMUNITY FORESTRY TRAINING MODULES

Module 1: Policy and Sociocultural Setting

Purpose:To bring about clarity on what community forestry is as distinguished from other management strategies and how it is supported by national policy. At the end of this course the student should be able to:

Support development and implementation of land/forest tenure and policy Define Community forestry Explain the environment under which CF operates Explain how the good social and cultural practices can be adopted in CF management, and Appreciate the role of human activity on forest productivity

Course Description:National Forest policy: National forests and management structures/institutions; Land/forest tenure, Tree tenure, Definition of Community Forestry and distinction from other forest management models; Malawi forest ownership and policy on Community Forestry; Global and national history of community forestry; Traditional institutions and forestry; The influences of religion and other beliefs; Indigenous knowledge on forests and tree species (social and cultural influences); Gender roles in various activities relating to forests and trees; Harmonizing traditional beliefs and indigenous knowledge with mod -ern forest management principles; Objectives of Community Forestry; Policy coordination across sectors, Drivers of forest degradation and deforestation.

Teaching methods:Lectures, guest lecturers, group work and discussions, visits to at least two different local communities

Special ResourcesMalawi National Forest Policy, Case studies of other policies in sectors relating to forestry

Methods of evaluation:Continuous assessment tests, final examination.

Module 2: Forest Governance and Livelihoods

Purpose:To equip the graduate with strategic understanding of the context of CF management. At the end of this course the stu-dent should be able to:

Explain the value of community forestry: Wood, food and ecological services Demonstrate how the local community benefits from the various forest products and services Apply participatory approaches to forest management, Explain the cross-sectoral links, and Resolve conflicts

Course Description:

Timber and non-timber forest products; Commonly used species by product categories; Common methods of extraction; The Forest Act and customary laws; Threats to forest ecosystem services; Tree management and use on private farms; Public forest management; Private forest management; Participatory approaches to public forest management; Decentral-ized forest management; Cross-sectoral challenges; Conflict management at different scales and across institutions

Teaching methods:Lectures, guest lecturers, group work and discussions, visits to at least two different local communities; engagement with local and traditional leaders. Visits to public and private forests

Special ResourcesLocal governance structure and modus operandi. Case studies of other policies in sectors relating to forestry, especially

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agriculture, environment, energy and water.

Methods of evaluation:Continuous assessment tests; field visit reports, final examination.

Module 3: Principles of Community Forestry

Purpose:To equip the student with tools for analyzing and making choices in CF management. At the end of this course the student should be able to:

Appreciate the distinction in models for management of private, public and community forests Apply participatory tools in working with local communities, Identify benefits and risks involved Provide professional advice to local communities Advise on how best to finance community forest projects Understand and explain laws pertaining to communal property and especially tenure. Establish and operationalize an innovation platform at community level

Course Description: Harmonizing national with local and private individual interests/needs; Resource inventory principles and practices; Gov-ernance Principles; Common management strategies and structures; Formulation and enforcement of by laws; Roles of different stakeholders; Benefits and benefit sharing; Risks and how to avert them; Professional and technical support to local communities (Roles of government and Roles of civil societies (NGOs, CBOs etc.); Power relations and delegation; Financing community forest management; Legal protection; Social mobilization; Gender roles and equity; Land, forest and tree tenures; Conflict management; Common challenges to Community Forestry. Designing an managing innovation plat-forms (tools, practices, challenges)

Teaching methods:Lectures, guest lecturers, group work and discussions

Special ResourcesForest inventory reports, field exercises especially in inventory

Methods of evaluation:Continuous assessment tests, field practical tests..

Module 4: Agroforestry

Purpose:To equip the student with knowledge and skills to plan and implement agroforestry projects and advise farmers on species selection and planting methods and patterns At the end of this course the student should be able to:

Define agroforestry Identify different species suitable for agroforestry and methods of propagation, Design an agroforestry intervention Quantify and assess the benefits and challenges of agroforestry Explain how the good social and cultural practices can be adopted in CF management, and Critique unsustainable land use systems Design and implement agroforestry innovations under different cultural social and environmental settings Design and implement projects in agroforestry.

Course Description:Customary tree management on farms, Species suitable for agroforestry, tree propagation methods and tools, nursery management, Tree-crop- livestock systems, Trees for food security and nutrition; Trees for income generation; Soil fertility and conservation management with trees; Conservation agriculture. Agroforestry project design. Competitiveness of agro-forestry systems versus monocultures; Managing landscape mosaics generated through agroforestry. Agroforestry Re-search

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Enhancing Crop Productivity Through Forestry And Agroforestryo Soil improvements - Raising soil organic matter for better water retention and fertilizer effectivenesso Providing pollinators : Birds, bees, butterflieso Reducing wind erosiono Conserving water catchment areaso Enhancing rain water percolationo Shade demanding crops

Teaching methods:Lectures, nursery work, practicum on vegetative propagation; visits to soil conservation areas and laboratory tests on soils

Special ResourcesTree Seed Supply Systems (ICRAF); GIS tools for land assessment

Methods of evaluation:Continuous assessment tests; laboratory practical assessments and field visit reports.

Module 5: Biodiversity and The Environment (Source: Adapted from ANAFE 2014)

CONTENTS

Purpose:To equip the graduate with capacity to understand and protect biodiversity. At the end of this course the student should be able to:

Identify conditions, laws and actions that lead to biodiversity losses Assess biodiversity in a given area Assess the losses and consequences Engage in biodiversity debates at local and national levels Develop policy advice and strategies to stem loss of biodiversity

Course Description:

Definitions of biodiversity and environment; Agricultural biodiversity; Diversity of natural resources; Ecosystem variations and their value/benefits; Alleles, genes and species variations ; Biodiversity indices; Genetically modified Organisms (GMOs); Biodiversity and value of ecosystem services; Threats to loss of biodiversity (natural and anthropogenic); Threat-ened and extinct species, ecosystems/biomes; Assessing biodiversity, quantifying losses; Tools and techniques for man-aging biodiversity in diverse habitats. Biodiversity measurement, indices biodiversity; functional diversity; diversity index; evenness; relative abundance, species richness; richness accumulation curves; local threats to biodiversity. Causes of biodiversity loss; Risks associated with loss of biodiversity; mitigation and adaptation measures. Policy and legal frame -works on biodiversity. National laws and international conventions; International trade in species and CITES processes. International material transfer agreements.The physical and biological environment, environmental pollution of water, soils, air and consequences on different habi -tats and life forms; Energy use and its impact on environment and agriculture (fuelwood, fossil fuels). Green energy sources.

Teaching methods:Lectures, guest lecturers, group work and discussions, visits to biodiversity hotspots, case studies on wild plant and ani -mal species in community areas.

Special ResourcesMillennium Ecosystem Assessment Report; UN convention on biodiversity, UN Convention on environment.

Methods of evaluation:Continuous assessment tests, Biodiversity field tests, final written examination.

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Module 6: Livestock and Wildlife Management

CONTENTS

Purpose:To reinforce the understanding on the roles of wildlife and domestic livestock in livelihoods and how their management is part and parcel of overall landscape management. At the end of this course the student should be able to:

List common livestock and wildlife species of Malawi and their ecology Analyze the interactions of livestock and wildlife with crop farming and forestry Provide technical support in planning wildlife management in community forests Guide investment in wildlife resources

Course Description:

Common livestock and wildlife in community areas in Malawi, Uses of animal products, Wildlife species in community forests and their impact on productivity. Listing and discussion on rodents; mammals, birds, primates (monkeys) and in -sects of importance. Wildlife inventory techniques; Fodder/forage species - supplies and quality; ranching and ranch man -agement; Animal disease management; Animal impact on human health; Performance analysis of production and prof -itability; Case studies.

Wildlife: Wildlife migrations and their interface with agricultural production with risks to crops and to wildlife; Policies and practices for protection of human life and property in wildlife areas; protection of wildlife from poaching and in conflict zones; Wildlife diseases and risks to human livestock (e.g. sleeping sickness, bird flu); Risks of wild pests migrating into farming areas.

Teaching methods:Lectures, Case studies on wildlife production and marketing success and challenges.

Methods of evaluation:Reports on risks of wildlife production and marketing studies, final written examination.

Module 7: Business and Wealth Creation

Purpose:To enable the student to acquire business knowledge and skills. At the end of this course the student should be able to:

Analyze markets and product targeting Establish a business enterprise in at least two tree products Develop product value chains Understand the different ways of adding value to products and services Explain legal aspects regarding business

Course Description:Typology of forest/tree products and uses, Value chains for five common forest/tree products, Value adding needs, meth-ods and opportunities; Developing cottage industries; Markets Value and chains; Market intelligence and pricing; Applica -tion of Communication tools; Credit management and insurance; Business skills in forest/tree products and services; Ne -gotiation skills; Business licensing, Taxation.

Teaching methods:Lectures, practicum on product development and marketing; visits to private enterprises and cottage industries

Special ResourcesA business incubation entre at the institutions. Competition in writing a viable business proposal

Methods of evaluation:

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Continuous assessment tests; field visit reports; business proposal writing.

Module 8: Food security and nutrition 1

Purpose:To familiarize the students with global, regional and national perspectives on food and nutrition so they can better under -stand the role of forestry. At the end of this course the student should be able to:

Define and describe food security and nutrition; Illustrate the Malawi food policy; Explain how forestry can play meaningful roles in food security and nutrition; Plan and implement an inventory of forest foods; income generated from the forestry sector; extent of depen-

dency of using woodfuel for cooking and water sterilization; and use of NWFPs for medicines in a given area. Carry out simple analysis of food security and nutrition in a given community; and Plan and implement an inventory of forest foods in a given area.

Course Description:Terminology and Definitions and policies (with Malawi and SADC contexts)

Food security; Nutritional Security; Food categories and main sources: grains, meats, meat, fish, fruits, vegeta-bles spices and condiments; International consumption standards; Food components: carbohydrates, proteins, vitamins and minerals;

Food as a human right; Food in geopolitics; Malawi food policy; National and local food security challenges; Gender and food; Food and health.

The nexus between agriculture and forestry; Forest Foods

The trophic levels in a forest system: Carnivores, herbivores, omnivores; Forests as future food reserves: Gene pools, propagation, domestication, drought and disease resistance, Food from plants: fruits, seeds, nuts, leaves bark, gums, resins, roots and tubers, spices, gums, saps, oils. Foods from wild animals/insects: Big game, porcupines, tortoises, crabs, rodents (rabbits, grass cutters, squir-

rels, rats etc.), termites, snails, caterpillars, worms, honey Fodder and forage for wildlife and domestic livestock Techniques for forest food assessments Forest management strategies for food production

Teaching methods:Lectures, guest lecturers from food, agriculture and health sectors, Practicum in assessing forest foods, group work and discussions, visits to forests and local communities.

Special ResourcesMalawi National Food Policy; IFPRI and FAO Food Security monitors (online); Case studies of other policies in sectors relating to food.

Methods of evaluation:Continuous assessment tests, practicum and final examination.

Module 9: Food and Nutritional Security 2

Purpose:To develop practical skills in forest food harvesting, processing and preservation. At the end of this course the student should be able to:

Manage food production, processing and packing and Explore markets for forest foods Plan and implement a food processing enterprise

Course Description: Harvesting and handling techniques for different food products: Preservation: Sun drying, flue drying,

smoking, salt addition; Transportation and storage; Food safety; Use of preservatives Pests - rodents,

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insects, fungi, bacteria; Honey processing; Beeswax products; Organic foods; niche markets; Spices man-agement; Medicinal products management; Essential oils and cosmetic products; Cottage industries design and management.

Teaching methods:Lectures, guest lecturers from industry. Practicum in handling forest foods, group work and discussions, visits to process -ing plants and markets.

Special ResourcesA business incubation facility established at the institution.

Methods of evaluation:Continuous assessment tests, practicum and final examination.

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GUIDED STUDY TOPICS

The students may work in groups or individually to develop deep understanding in these topics. At the end of the semester/year they will be examined individually through written examinations.

Relating to society

Traditional beliefs relating to trees and forests Gender differentiation relating to forests and trees

Relating to Agriculture

Impact of agricultural expansion on forest resources Shade demanding crops Pastoralism and Management of woodlands Vermin and crop production

Relating to Environment, Livelihoods and Food Security

Forest foods (including bush meat) Wood energy saving strategies Biodiversity of community forests Climate change impact on community forests

Relating to forest food and nutrition

Assessment of the contribution of forests and agroforests to food security and nutrition Propagation techniques for forest crops/animals Promoting niche markets for forest foods

Relating to Other Natural Resources

Water management in community forests Ecotourism

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Annex 2. Draft project proposal

Title: Enhancing the Content and Effectiveness of Forestry Education and Business in Malawi

Target Institutions

Department of Forestry at Lilongwe University of Agriculture and Natural Resources Natural Resources College (integrated into LUANAR as a constituent college) Malawi College of Forestry and Wildlife Local communities Private entrepreneurs involved in forestry

Collaborating stakeholders

Department of Forestry, Mzuzu University Malawi Forest Department, Ministry of Natural Resources, Energy and Mining Representatives of local communities Forest Industry representatives NGOs involved in forest/tree-related businesses, especially TLC, ICRAF, Concern Universal TEVETA Malawi (on vocational level training)

Background

In 2014, FAO and UNIDO sponsored and implemented situation analysis regarding forestry education and training in four SADC countries; Malawi, South Africa, Zambia and Zimbabwe. The main objective was to “Strengthen Forestry Training Centres and Wood Industries for Green Employment in the SADC Region”. Preliminary reviews, opinions and challenges were compiled on wood industry and forestry education sectors. It was concluded that there was a need to undertake an intensive analysis of forestry education needs in Malawi and to better under-stand the capacity of existing institutions to deliver relevant and quality forestry education. This was carried out in 2015, with special focus on forestry training institutions, private sector needs, local community needs community (especially with regard to the management of communal forests) and the opportunities to create jobs through en-gagement with private sector business enterprises . The study provides the background for the formulation of this proposal.

The 2015 survey covered the following institutions

Teaching institutions: Department of forestry at LUANAR, Malawi College of Forestry and Wildlife Government Ministries: Natural Resources, Energy and Mining; Agriculture Irrigation and Water Develop-

ment, Economic Planning, Education Science and Technology Non-Government organizations: Total Land Care and Concern Universal Private sector: RAIPLY and Lizulu Timber sales and Joinery and Private timber traders in Lilongwe Research Institutions: World Agroforestry Centre ICRAF) Malawi country office and node for Southern

Africa

The survey findings point to a huge challenge in reversing the land and forest degradation and in meeting the fu -ture forest product needs of Malawi. Forestry experts are needed to:

Support the re-greening of degraded landscapes and water conservation Support the development of tree resources on farm, through agroforestry among other innovations Support the management of communal forests, and especially develop forest foods, nutrition and medi-

cine production Enable efficient management of tree and forest management through the application of silvicultural tech-

niques Undertake and support business/enterprises in tree products and services (including quality assurance) Improve efficiency in industrial processing of wood (including wood fuel) at all scales

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Develop and implement forestry strategies to combat climate change and associated risks.

The absence of industrial training in Malawi manifests itself in the form of inefficiency and wastage in most pro -cesses of forest production, timber harvesting, sawmilling, carpentry and wood fuel uses. It is obvious that introdu -cing vocational training for industrial sector will generate green jobs that cut down on wastage and thereby redu -cing deforestation. With close to 90% of the population relying on wood and charcoal for cooking and heating en -ergy, one would expect a thriving firewood and charcoal stoves industry. This is not the case today but through this project a pilot system will be developed to strengthen this area.

The following proposal is based on the twin consultative processes, which are the survey and inception report shared in 2014 and 2015 and the stakeholders workshop held in June 2015 in Lilongwe. The project design follows a participatory process where the key stakeholders will have opportunities to contribute ideas, financially and in kind to the design and implementation of the project. Ultimately, our objective is to secure a sustainable forestry development capacity that enables Malawi to achieve sustainable forest resource-based development as conserva-tion of nature and the environment.

The proposal

The following proposal is based on the results of the survey, and suggestions from a stakeholder’s workshop in June 2015 at which the survey findings were shared. The workshop confirmed the need for the planned interven-tions.

Overall objective

Technical and professional forestry capacity in Malawi is adequate and effective in driving forestry sector developments including business and environmental conservation We propose seven strategic objectives which are logically linked:

Specific Objective 1: To enhance content and relevance of forestry education and training

Specific Objective 2: To restructure and improve delivery of forestry education and training

Specific Objective 3: To strengthen income generation by training and education institutions

Specific Objective 4: To improve the capacity for efficient and profitable forest industries and opportunities

for green jobs

Specific Objective 5: To develop and implement a model on the integration of food security and nutrition in

community forestry

Specific Objective 6: To promote cross-sectoral and regional collaboration and networking in education

Specific Objective 7: To promote efficient and profitable carbonization processes as well as efficient cook-

ing and heating stoves.

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Project Results Matrix

Results Chain

Indicators

AssumptionsIndicators Baseline Target Means of Verific-

ation

Impact: Profitable and sustain-able management of Malawi’s tree and forest resources

Strength of forestry institu-tions

Forest Depart-ment and FAO statistics

50 percent Increase Institutional capa-city assessment reports

Government will-ingness to streamline forestry Education & training

Supply of needed professionals and skilled labour in forestry

Data on state of forestry educa-tion and training in Malawi

25 Percent increase in professionals and 75% increased tech-nical and vocational labour

Demand for pro-fessionals and for industrial skills

Private sector demand for forestry expertise

Outcome 1: LUANAR, MCFW and MU fully adopt improved cur-ricula, learning re-sources and achieve full teaching capacity

Institutional pro-cesses and an-nual reports, FAO/UNDP pro-ject reports

Rising student interest in forestry

2015 state of forestry educa-tion reports

Full adoption of improved curricula and learning re-sources

Full implementation of faculty recruitment and upgrades

Annual surveys of training needs at all levels

Client-based re-views of education institutions and graduates

Supportive na-tional policies and strategies

Outcome 2: LUANAR, MCFW, MU and the new vocational forestry learning centre adopt income generating business approaches to education

Rise in the pro-portion of budgets covered by gener-ated income

Currently no income is gener-ated by the insti-tutions

To meet at least 20% of total budget by end of year 5

Institutional and student enterprise reports

Treasury recogni-tion of revenues

Sufficient capital will be provided to launch income generating activit-ies

Treasury allows MCFW to adopt a business model

Outcome 3: Users of forest and tree products actively promote forest food products and adopt energy saving measures

Periodic assess-ment reports

Basic data to be collected at the beginning of the FAO/UNDP project

At least a 20% in-come rise/savings in communities in-volved in the project, by the end of year 5

Independent as-sessments of project perform-ance

Full support by NGOs, local au-thorities and cent-ral government

Outputs1.LUANAR, MCFW and

MU meet the needs for Malawi profes-sional and industrial training in Forestry

Annual records of graduation at teaching institu-tions

2015 statistics. Sector needs to be compiled in a participatory process

To be set according to identified needs

Forest Depart-ment’s training coordinator Plus independent as-sessments

Enabling Govern-ment policies and support

2. Vocational Forestry Learning Centre (VFLC) is established and fully operational

Demand for skilled workers by private and in-formal sector

Industrial training in forestry is wanting (figures needed)

The business sector is growing

Fully operational vocational training centre

TEVETA records and quality assur-ance reports

Government and TEVETA support

Private and in-formal sector interest and sup-port

Financing avail-

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able

Activities1. Content and relevance of forestry education and training strengthened

1.1. Support forestry manpower planning for Malawi1.2. Review the curricula of all forestry and natural resources training institutions to strengthen community forestry, Agro-

forestry, Food and nutrition Security and Business contents Development of a method for a systematic follow-up of trainees performance in the world of work taking in to regard regional movement of professionals

1.3. Support agricultural training and education institutions to also teach forestry related subjects especially on food and natural resources conservation with trees

1.4. Strengthen business and entrepreneurship in forestry education

2. Delivery of forestry education and training improved2.1. Strengthen the capacity of lecturers in Pedagogy and andragogy 2.2. Support the development of locally relevant training materials and other resources for the new courses and make them

available as electronic products2.3. Supply relevant laboratory training equipment for LUANAR and train the users2.4. Develop and apply information and communication technologies (ICT) to manage and share knowledge and experiences in

forestry. This will include cell-phone based data sharing, marketing, and boosting internet and telecommunication links for teaching institutions, especially MCFW.

3. Income generation by training and education institutions strengthened3.1. Support sustainable income generating activities at MCFW: Short training courses in (inter alia) nursery man-

agement, wood energy management, Agroforestry, and community based NRM.3.2. Provide small grants of up to US $ 3,000 to support final year students to undertake forest business enterprises and busi-

ness incubation projects

4. Capacity for efficient and profitable forest industries and opportunities for green jobs improved4.1. Negotiate for the establishment of a self-sustaining, demand-driven ‘vocational forestry learning centre’ (VFLC).4.2. Build the capacity for managing the VFLC4.3. Provide and support management of a revolving fund and oversight to launch the VFLC.4.4. Follow-up and monitor the VFLC

5. Cross sectoral and regional collaboration enhanced5.1. Write up methods and tools used to implement the project and document successes and challenges5.2. Develop a project website with products for free access and downloading5.3. Support regional visits and peer reviews

6. A model on the integration of food security and nutrition in community forestry developed and used6.1. An intensive analysis and selection of three suitable pilot community forests6.2. Technical support to promote production and value adding of at least three food and nutritional products 6.3. Develop a community-to-community project learning approach to disseminate the experience and results6.4. Synthesize the experience to feed into education programmes

7. Efficient and profitable carbonization processes as well as efficient cooking and heating stoves promoted7.1. Facilitate industrial development of firewood and charcoal stoves7.2. To develop links, complementarity and synergy with institutions dealing with alternative/complementary energy products

like windmills, solar panels which will cut down on use of biomass7.3. Use biomass to generate electricity in small plants for local use

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Summary budget (X 100 EURO)

Specific Objective Year 1 Year 2 Year 3 Year 4 Year 5 TotalSpecific Objective 1: To enhance content and relevance of forestry education and training

120 280 280 50 50 780

Specific Objective 2: To improve delivery of forestry education and training

160 180 180 150 150 820

Specific Objective 3: To strengthen in-come generation by training and educa-tion institutions

200 280 300 280 200 1260

Specific Objective 4: To improve the ca-pacity for efficient and profitable forest industries and opportunities for green jobs

300 380 400 350 300 1730

Specific Objective 5: To develop and implement a model on the integration of food security and nutrition in com-munity forestry

120 250 300 300 250 250

Specific Objective 6: To promote cross-sectoral and regional collaboration and networking

180 180 160 130 100 750

Specific objective 7: To promote efficient and profitable carbonization processes as well as efficient cooking and heating stoves

600 550 550 500 500 500

Total for all specific objectives 1680 2100 2170 1760 1550 6090Project coordination 150 160 170 180 190 850Auditing (Annual) 25 25 27 29 29 135Monitoring and Evaluation Mid-term and final

50 60 110

Total EURO 1855 2285 2417 1969 1829 7185Overheads (?? % of total budget)Grand Total EURO

FAO/UNIDO Programme Coordination

Coordination of the planned FAO/UNIDO programme is very crucial. It is assumed that financial transactions will be managed though the FAO Country Representative’s office. However, the programme office would be served best if based at LUANAR’s NRC campus. NRC has both the space and the ambiance to inspire effective and efficient project management. It is assumed here that the Forestry Department at LUANAR will be the main host of the programme. It is further assumed that the vocational education programme if accepted will also be hosted at NRC campus.

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Annex 3. Final year student survey results (LUANAR)

Twenty final year students filled in and returned the questionnaire and the results are presented here.

Was forestry your first choice? Explain your response.

Yes for 6 students. No for 14 students. They wanted Environmental science, nursing, pure science, nutrition. Of the 14 who did not choose forestry, 5 like forestry anyway.

Give your impressions on the following aspects of forestry education(1 is very poor, 5 is excellent)On Teaching capacity Scores

Poor Fair Good Very good Excellent1. Relevance of education to actual field conditions 5 0 3 9 32. Practical training facilities 9 3 7 1 03. Business coverage 5 6 3 4 24. Links with private sector* 4 4 4 3 45. Food security coverage 1 4 6 4 56. Community forestry coverage 0 2 6 8 47. Your capacity to do forestry related business 0 3 3 7 7

What improvements do you recommend?

More practicum in mensuration, silviculture, PFM and management planning (20 respondents). We need skills development in these areas

Introduce internships/industrial attachments More and better learning materials needed in all subjects Too much focus on theory, students just work hard for grades Give more time for project research (a whole semester or more)

Any other comments?

Not enough lecturers (8 respondents) Graduates end up and secondary school teachers, wasting the professional training (2 respondents) Forestry is very good and important but with no practical training it is hard to practice (6 respondents) The Forestry Department is poorly financed (2 respondents)

*One respondent did not answer this questionThe general conclusions are:

Popularize forestry education Strengthen teaching capacity Improve the supply of learning resources (including laboratories and teaching materials) Strengthen field/practical training Strengthen community forestry and food security content Forge links with private sector and strengthen business training including internships Allow more time for project research

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Annex 4. Stakeholders’ Scores on Various Aspects of Forestry in Malawi

There were 11 respondents coming from the following areas of specialization: Education management, quality assurance, environment, risk management, wood utilization, climate change, botany, ecology, forest policy, forestry, environmental health, community forestry, Forest management, forest industries, silviculture, wood business/industry, forestry education. Some respondents had more than one area of specialization.

Note that as some respondents skipped some of the questions, therefore not all rows add to 11 responses.

The figures show the numbers of persons scoring that level

Community Forestry in Malawi is: None Low Moder-ate

High Very High

1. Fully supported by forest policy 1 0 2 2 62. Well understood by district leaders 0 2 5 3 03. Well understood by local communities 1 1 8 0 04. Not confused with participatory forest management or

social forestry0 4 1 2 2

5. Gets adequate financing 2 4 3 1 06. Easily implemented by local communities 2 4 3 1 07. Adequately researched 0 5 3 1 08. Local communities get adequate technical support 1 1 7 1 19. Is well taught at certificate 0 3 1 4 310. Is well taught at diploma level 1 2 2 3 211. Is well taught at degree level 0 2 4 4 012. Country’s human capacity is adequate 1 3 3 2 113. Other sectors (e.g. agriculture, energy, water etc.) are

involved in it1 3 3 1 2

14. Well linked to forest product enterprise developments 1 4 5 0 115. Well promoted by NGOs 1 2 4 2 216. Actively involves private sector 2 4 2 2 1Sum up: Commitment/attention to Community forestry 14 44 56 29 21

Forestry for food security and nutrition None Low Moder-ate

High Very high

1. Malawi forests contribute to food security 0 1 2 2 52. Malawi forests contribute to nutritional security 0 2 2 2 33. There is a need for education on forest food and nutri-

tion1 1 1 1 6

4. Promoting business in forest foods is needed 0 1 1 3 4Totals 1 5 6 8 185. Forestry contributions to food security and nutrition are

recognized in forestry accounts3 3 0 3 0

6. MAFS recognizes forest food and nutrition contributions 1 2 2 3 07. Private sector invests in forest foods 2 3 3 0 18. NGOs invest in forest foods 1 2 4 2 09. Local communities invest in forest foods 1 4 3 0 110. There are effective MSMEs on forest foods 1 4 0 2 2Sum up: Current commitment to forest foods 9 18 12 4 4No additional comments made

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Forest industries efficiency None Low Moder-ate

High Very high

1. Sawmilling plants are efficient with high recovery rates 3 3 2 3 02. Carpentry workshops are efficient 2 4 2 2 03. Woodcarving is done efficiently 1 2 4 1 14. Firewood stoves are efficient 1 2 2 4 15. Charcoal stoves are efficient 0 3 2 2 3Sum up: Perspectives on efficiency in use of wood 7 14 12 12 56. Skilled workers in 1-3 above are available in adequate

numbers4 4 2 0 0

7. Firewood and charcoal producers are well trained 7 1 0 0 38. Wood fibre processing industries have qualified workers

(ply, Vernier, soft/hardboards etc.)0 3 4 2 1

9. Technical education produces skilled workers for forest industries

1 1 4 3 1

Totals 12 9 10 5 510. Capacity for training skilled forest industry workers is

low 1 0 2 2 6

11. Vocational training in forestry is needed 2 0 0 2 7Sum up: Perspectives on the need for vocational training 3 0 2 4 13Stakeholders’ Comments: There is a need to explore ways of making forestry business viable; Means are needs to enable checking and improving efficiency of charcoal and firewood stoves; there is a need for skills development in the energy area; More work needed to improve roofing and furniture timbers; Practical rather than theoretical training to pro-duce skilled workers is needed; Introduce entrepreneurship training so graduates can self-employ; Lecturers also need practical training in business.

Adequacy and quality of current forestry education None Low Moder-ate

High Very high

1. With MFCW, LUANAR and Mzuzu and NRC we have enough institutional capacity to produce enough foresters and skilled workers

2 0 3 4 1

2. Their training facilities (labs, equipment) and financial resources are adequate

6 3 1 0 0

3. The schools listed in 1 (above) do not need to be ex-panded to do a good job

4 3 0 0 3

4. Current capacity of lecturers/instructors is adequate 3 1 4 2 05. The current curricula meet the needs of the country 2 1 5 2 06. collaboration and exchange among the forestry schools

is adequate6 2 0 1 1

Sum up: Stakeholders’ perspectives of current forestry education

23 10 13 9 5

Suggestions for improvements7. More postgraduate research is needed to solve forestry

issues2 0 1 2 5

8. There is a need for specialization among the schools of forestry

2 1 2 2 3

9. The schools should also run profitable forestry busi-nesses (proof of concept)

0 2 0 2 6

10. Private sector in forest industries should support forestry education

2 0 0 3 5

11. A new school for industrial skills development training is not needed

3 1 1 0 5

12. Women inclusion in forestry requires attention at all levels

0 1 1 0 7

Sum up: The need for forest education improvements 9 5 5 9 31

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Comments/suggestions for the future:

o Strengthen collaboration among all training and education institutions in forestryo Private sector involvement in forestry education be actively pursuedo There is a need to reinforce wood/timber standardso Assess the training needs of trainers/educators and enhance their capacityo All training institutions should be assesseso Enhance agroforestry trainingo Enhance research and outreach in all training o Strengthen practicum at all levelso Improve training facilitieso There is a need to review he forestry sector training needs: Sector Advisory Committee?o Industry should express their skills needso The need for a well-rounded forestry graduates in prime. Specialization may not help.

Additional views/comments of respondent on forestry education:

o Enhance multi-stakeholder involvement in curricula and in trainingo Undertake tracer study to evaluate the performance of graduateso Mind-set changes are needed to address cross cutting issueso Expand current technical training to include industrial training. No need for a new school.o Establish ad strengthen links between schools and industry for mutual supporto Training institutions should be equipped with training forests

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Annex 5. Persons met

Date Name Position /Title Organization Email address17/6/2015 Mr Harold

ChisaleLecturer, forest products utiliza-tion

Forestry Department LUANAR, Lilongwe

Harold.chisale@gmail.com Cell +265993189355

18/6/2015 Prof G. Y. Kanyama-Phiri

Vice Chancellor LUANAR,P.O Box 219 Lilongwe, Malawi

vc@bunda.luanar.mwgykphiri@gmail.comCell +265999933085

18/6/2015 Moses D Ntholo Deputy Head Lecturer Forest biology/ecology

Forestry DepartmentLUANAR, Lilongwe

mdntholo@yahoo.commntholo@bunda.luanar.mw Cell +265996600118

18/6/2015 Gift Kamanga Thole

Lecturer, Forest Protection

Forestry DepartmentLUANAR, Lilongwe

Kamangathole@yahoo.comCell +265888363747

18/6/2015 Prof Weston Mwase

Climate change and natural re-sources Man-agement

Forestry DepartmentLUANAR, Lilongwe

wmwase@bunda.luanar.mw Cell +265999699669

19/6/2015 Mike Ching’amba

Head of Dept. of Agriculture

Dept. of Agriculture LUANAR NRC Cam-pus PO Box 143 Lilongwe

mikechingamba@gmail.comCell +265888497245

19/6/2015 Principal Mdolo Lecturer Envir-onmental Man-agement

Dept. of Natural Re-sources LUANAR NRC campus

princemdolo@yahoo.com

19/6/2015 and on 20/6/2015

Betserai Nyoka Senior Re-searcher South-ern Africa co-ordinator

World Agroforestry Centre (ICRAF)

B.Nyoka@cgiar.orgCell +265999447432

22/6/2015 Wilfred Kadewa Dean Faculty of Natural Re-sources

LUANAR P O Box 219 Lilongwe

Kadewa@yahoo.com ; kadewa@bunda.luanar.mw Cell +265991465099

23/6/2015 Judith Kamoto Head, Dept. of Forestry

LUANAR P O Box 219 Lilongwe

judithkamoto@gmail.com+265995567000

23/6/2015 Clement Chilima Director of Forestry (DOF)

Department of Forestry, Ministry of natural Resources, Energy and Mining

23/6/2015 Francis Chilim-ampunga

Deputy DOFplanning

23/6/2015 Nyuma Mug-hogho

Deputy DOF, Communication

23/6/2015 Stella Gama Assistant DOF23/6/2015 Teddie Kamoto Assistant DOF23/6/2015 Ms Nyumamo Assistant DOF23/6/2015 Ms Rolle

FlorenceFAO Represen-tativeMalawi

Everyn Court, Plot 13/31 Capital CityP.O. Box 30750Lilongwe 3

FAO-MW@fao.orgFlorence.Rolle@fao.orgTel: +2651773255Dir: : +2651773925Cell: : +265888822853

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Date Name Position /Title Organization Email address24/6/2015 Trinitas Sangan-

imalunjePrincipal MCFW

Malawi College of Forestry and Wildlife (MCFW)

Cell +26588886898824/6/2015 Ms. Monica

GondweDeputy Principal, MCFW

mfgodwe@gmail.com

24/6/2015 Franklin Chilomba

Lecturer franklinchilomba@gmail.comCell +265881779777

24/6/2015 E. O. Mando Forester Raiply Malawi25/6/2015 Senard Mwale Programme

ManagerCONERN UNIVERSAL

Senard.mwale@concern-univer-sal.org Cell +265999552968

26/6/2015 Charles P. Msosa

Principal Secret-ary for Higher Education

Ministry of Education Science and Tech-nology

charlesmsosa@yahoo.com Cell +265265888821644Office +2651789213

27/6/2015 Mr Mbewe Manager Lizulu Timber Sales and Joinery

Cell +999867366

27/6/2015 Mr Sanjay and Chipeta (cell)

Manager RAIPLY LTD +265999566566

29/6/2015 George Phiri FAO Officer FAO Country office29/6/2015 Trent Bunderson Executive Dir-

ectorTotal LandcarePO Box 2440 Li-longwe

trentbunderson@yahoo.comCell +265888838072Cell +265999838072

29/6/2015 Michael Mmangisa

Programme Manager

Ministry of Economic Planning and Devel-opmentPO Box 30136 Li-longwe 3

Michal.mmngisa@undp.orgCell +265888208029Cell+265999917753Skype mahara2008

29/6/2015 Henry Sibanda UNDP Adviser to Ministry of Envir-onment

Ministry of Environ-ment Lingadzi Hse

sibandahm@yahoo.comhenry.sibanda@undp.orgCell +265993220719

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