MFYOME Villagers at Kiwere Ward of Iringa district Council in Iringa Region has succeeded to arrest 298 timber consignment suspected to be cut from Gangalamtumba village natural forest to the existing causing environmental destruction early this month.
The villagers in conjunction with the Lawyers Association advocates of Environmental Action (LEAT) through its project of citizens' participation in natural resource management funded by the American people (USAID), has succeeded to capture wood delivery with street value of nine million shillings.
Speaking yesterday during the monitoring and evaluation project activities; introduction alternative income generating activities (IGAs) at Mfyome village, LEAT Communications Officer, Miriam Mshana said education in social responsibility is important as it helps raise morale among citizens living in areas around the resources they protect.
“This is due to the fruitful result of the training of citizen engagement in Government oversight of the management of natural resources (forestry and wildlife),” said Mshana.
She said that in collaboration with USAID, LEAT trained villagers in the social responsibility project by empowering citizens in environmental conservation where great efforts have been undertaken in control people who are destroying environment and take drastic measures.
Mshana said that in previous years, to take care of the forests, wildlife and fishing was carried out by the government but now that the role is currently under consideration at the level of villages and districts where citizens are directly involved in the handling of related resources and trained in the proper handling of the environment.
The government leaders and service providers are equally required to prepare, submit and disseminate implementation reports at the end of financial year.
"This project of citizens engaging in natural resource management aims to empower people to participate in government oversight in managing natural resources through Social Accountability Monitoring,” said the Communications Officer.
She said that the project was aimed at making sure that government leaders and service providers are held fully responsible when they fail to deliver the required services as they are indicated in the strategic plan, annual work plan and the district budget in relation to natural resources.
In implementing the CEGO-NRM project, Lawyers' Environmental Action Team (LEAT) was done in collaboration with Community Based Organizations (CBOs) aiming at empowering the citizens in Natural Resources Management (NRM), Social Accountability Monitoring (SAM), as well as Income Generating Activities (IGA's).
The CEGO-NRM project aims to empower the citizens of Iringa Rural and Mufindi districts in Iringa region to improve accountability and oversight of public resources by increasing their participation in natural resources management, benefit sharing, governance, and oversight of services delivery at the local government authority levels.
On her part, Chuki Mduda is a member of the Social Accountability Monitoring (SAM) committee at the district level, said after the arrest of the timber; the village administration has decided to use the timber to make some school desks to finish the problem of shortage of desks in the village.
Mduda said the timber logged from the natural forest of Gangalamtumba which is in the Mfyome village which those people were found doing the destruction of the environment after many citizens got education to protecting the environment.
She said that now the citizens have education they will arrest those who damage the environment and took them to the local government to take legal action against them.
However, the project of involving citizens in the participation of management of natural resources managed by LEAT and supported USAID has been implemented in 32 villages from the two district councils of Iringa rural and Mufindi in Iringa Region.
These districts were selected because they contain wildlife management areas, wildlife resources, forests, and protected areas.
The project on Citizen Engagement in Government Oversight (CEGO) in Natural Resources Management and Social Accountability Monitoring (SAM) was the project aimed at making sure that government leaders and service providers are held fully responsible when they fail to deliver the required services as they are indicated in the strategic plan, annual work plan and the district budget.
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