World Environment Day, 5th June
5th June is World Environment Day (WED) set aside by the United Nations General Assembly for nations to think about their environment. Malawi joined the international community in commemorating the day. The international theme for this year was: Your planet needs YOU! Unite to Combat Climate Change.
Governments across the globe commemorated the day by nationalizing the theme to suit their current situation on the impact of climate change. The local theme for Malawi was: Let’s unite to combat climate change: Save Malawi from floods and droughts to ensure food securitytranslated in Chichewa as Tigwirizane tigonjetse kusintha kwanyengo; Tipulumutse Malawi kuchilala ndi kusefulira kwa madzi kuti tikhale ndi chakudya chokwanira”
A taskforce comprising of CEPA and other civil society of Malawi, government departments and parastatals organised the event to commemorate this day. Mangochi, a lakeshore district that is highly prone to flood and drought resulting from climate change was chosen for the event. The day was commemorate on Saturday, the 6th of June to allow for more stakeholders to participate.
The impacts of flood and drought on the communitites has been enhanced by poor catchment management in the country.The event focused on raising awareness on the protection of catchment areas to minimize the impact of floods which leads to food insecurity and ways of adapting to climate change also to enhance food security..
The
Event
The day commenced with a march where participants carried messages and sang of the days theme. There was a variety of perfomances to entertain the masses, meanwhile preaching messages encouraging environment conservation which included drama groups, a quiz, traditional dances and a live band.
Local communities, government departments also diplayed their wares, educating people on how they conserve their environment while also attaining food security. Communities with the best displays on their effort to rehabilitate their environment were awarded.
Environmental
Awards
Commeration of the day did not stop there but went on to award journalists who have played a greater role in reporting on the environment. These awards extended both to press and electronic media.
A press release which pointed out key issues on climate change in the country and made a demand to policy makers was published in the newspapers. This is to be followed by a meeting of CEPA and other civil society organisations with the policy makers and other stakeholders on promotion of indigenous knowledge. This is where CEPA and the CSOs will present the policy demands.
For more information on the global scene, visit http://www.unep.org/wed/2009
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| Students awarded after outstanding perfomances |
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