Africa-Press – Tanzania. SCHOOL children are in pole position to become environment conservators now and lead in the sector in future and that has manifested itself in villages surrounding Eastern Arc Mountains, thanks to the Eastern Arc Mountains Conservation Endowment Fund (EAMCEF).
The Trust Fund that functions as a long-term and reliable funding mechanism to support community development, biodiversity conservation and applied research projects, has engaged with several schools and stakeholders to come up with environment clubs to conserve nature reserve forests in several regions, including Kilimanjaro and Tanga.
Ms Magreth Victor, EAMCEF Programs Officer for Tanzania Northern Zone has expressed optimism, saying that the future is bright as far as environmental conservation is concerned.
She said the Fund has continuously been providing support in terms of finance and technical knowhow to ensure that nature reserve forests, such as Amani, Magamba and Nilo are safeguarded by all.
Through the pupils, asserts Ms Victor, a huge number of seedlings are prepared at schools’ nurseries where tree seeds are sown and the seedlings are planted at school surroundings, others given to pupils to plant at their families’ plots while others are sold to the public.
This is done in more than seven schools in the said areas. “It is imperative to run the campaign by involving school children because they are the future conservators and leadersEnvironmental education provides important opportunities for pupils to become engaged in real world issues that transcend classroom walls.
After receiving education in theory and practice, they carry it to their scattered homes and campaign goes on from those places,” noted Ms Victor.
Among schools that have been included in the program is Mkuzi Primary School in Lushoto district, Tanga region that has a huge tree nursery with seedlings at different growth levels and are meant for fruits, shades as well as well as the source of rain in the mountainous areas and hence the precious liquid – water.
Mkuzi Primary School Headteacher, Ms Dhahabu Tindwa said her students are even more eager to make their nursery bigger and produce more seedlings for the public so as to maintain the green scenery in Lushoto.
The project has also made pupils to be creative as they no longer depend on plastic bags in which they would sow seeds, but make their own by using banana leaves.
“Pupils get involved fully in servicing the nurseries – from field preparations, sowing seeds, watering, weeding as well as transferring them for planting in their permanent places.
Each pupil is given eight seedlings for planting at their home farms while we ensure that we plant enough at the school for fruits and shade,” says Ms Tindwa.
She is proud of the pupils, saying more than 30 have joined the Environment Club and apart from tree planting, they have organized themselves in a choir and come up with several numbers in the spirit of safeguarding the environment.
Carren Joseph, a Standard Five pupil at the school, says the trees are useful as they are the source of fresh air, shade and water that is crucial in daily life. She says that after selling some seedlings they bought several items, including detergents. She is planning to become a great conservator.
Michael Benedict, a Standard Four pupil at the same school is cheerful to be a member of the environmental club at the school.
He says many other pupils now wish to join them, especially when they see visitors, including funders, leaders and tourists pass by and talk to club members.
Lushoto District Council Acting Forestry Officer, Mr Mfaume Mhonda sees the project as one of the most productive in the district, hailing EAMCEF for its efforts, saying its dream of seeing the Eastern Arc Mountains and the people who depend on them live in harmony as one sustainable ecosystem is becoming a reality.
Mr Mhonda says given the huge budgetary budget the Council has, it would not be possible for it to shoulder the responsibility that the Trust Fund has taken to promote the biological diversity, ecological functions and sustainable use of natural resources in the Eastern Arc Mountains.
The Eastern Arc Mountains are among the most important areas for the conservation of biological diversity in the world.
Their conservation is supported by the EAMCEF in collaboration with the Government of Tanzania and various development partners, including the Government of Norway and GEF/UNDP.
