Prime Minister Plants Trees on World Environment Day

5 June 2011

Maputo — Mozambican Prime Minister Aires Ali on Sunday urged all Mozambicans to safeguard the natural wealth of the country’s forests.

Speaking in Chilembene, in the southern province of Gaza, on the occasion of World Environment Day, Ali warned that the continued destruction of forests would lead to the disappearance of the fauna and flora they contain.

The main celebrations of World Environment Day were held in Chilembene, because this is the birthplace of the country’s first President, Samora Machel. 2011 marks the 25th anniversary of Machel’s death, and the government has decreed it “Samora Machel Year”.

The celebrations are held under the slogan “Forests are life, forests are our wealth – let’s preserve them”.

At Chilembene, children and adults from the local community joined Ali and other members of the government to plant 1,550 trees in an area of two hectares. These are the beginnings of a community forest that will eventually cover 73 hectares. The trees planted were of both native and exotic species.

“Today, when climate change is a reality, it is the government’s concern and priority to adopt measures of adaptation and mitigation, in order to respond to the challenges posed by these changes”, said Ali.

He said that the country now has about 5,900 “environmental educators”, and has set up 3,266 community forests. Under the campaigns for every school pupil to last at least one tree a year, and for every community leader to be responsible for a community forest, over 7.6 million trees have been planted.

Demonstration projects have been established in the semi-arid Gaza districts of Guija and Chicualacuala, Ali added, to train communities in how to deal with the effects of climate change and of drought, and in techniques for retaining water for domestic and livestock consumption,

Preserving the forests, the Prime Minister stressed, guarantees the quality of life. Apart from providing a beautiful landscape, the forests help maintain climatic balance, provide shelter for wild life, guarantee a diversity of flora, and help stabilize hillsides.

“So we should all preserve our forests and our environment, in order to guarantee the future of our planet for new generations, and avoid the serious consequences caused by the degradation of the environment”, he urged.

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