In a bid to address risk of tree extinction and conservation in Malawi, Malawi University of Science and Technology (MUST) under the Spatial Biodiversity Assessment, Prioritization and Planning (SBAPP) is conducting a species assessment exercise to analyze endangered species.
According to the state of the World’s Trees report, Malawi has 730 trees species, 49 which are already under the threat of extinction.
The 2024 first Global Assessment released in October 2024 by the International Union for the of Nature indicate that 38 of the world’s tree species are at risk of extinction.
It is for this reason that MUST has taken species extinction identification exercise in collaboration with the National Herbarium and Botanical Gardens.
Speaking in an interview Dr Elizabeth Mwafongo, a botanist at Botanical Gardens said the aim is to find solutions to conserve all endangered species.
“We want all endangered species to survive. From the onset of the exercise, 18 endemic plant species have already been identified including Termanali which is at risk”, she said.
She said: the exercise is very important because it will help asses all the endangered species in Malawi whereas developing a plan that will protect them”, she said.
In her Dr Tionge Mzumara Gawa, the SBAPP Project Coordinator in Malawi the exercise is important as it will give a clear picture on where world is at.
“This exercise will provide a clearer understanding of what state our countries species are in and the necessary actions needed. This is a milestone is preserving the countries ecosystem”, she said.
SBAPP is a regional project implemented in Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia and South Africa with regional coordination from SANBI and funded by Agence Francaise de Développment (AFD) and Fonds Francais pour l’Environnement Mondial (FFEM).
In a bid to address risk of tree extinction and conservation in Malawi, Malawi University of Science and Technology (MUST) under the Spatial Biodiversity Assessment, Prioritization and Planning (SBAPP) is conducting a species assessment exercise to analyze endangered species.
According to the state of the World’s Trees report, Malawi has 730 trees species, 49 which are already under the threat of extinction.
The 2024 first Global Assessment released in October 2024 by the International Union for Nature indicate that 38 of the world’s tree species are at risk of extinction.
It is for this reason that MUST has taken species extinction identification exercise in collaboration with the National Herbarium and Botanical Gardens.
Speaking in an interview Dr Elizabeth Mwafongo, a botanist at Botanical Gardens said the aim is to find solutions to conserve all endangered species.
“We want all endangered species to survive. From the onset of the exercise, 18 endemic plant species have already been identified including Termanali which is at risk”, she said.
She said: the exercise is very important because it will help asses all the endangered species in Malawi whereas developing a plan that will protect them”, she said.
In her remarks, Dr Tionge Mzumara Gawa, the SBAPP Project Coordinator in Malawi the exercise is important as it will give a clear picture on where world is at.
“This exercise will provide a clearer understanding of what state our countries species are in and the necessary actions needed. This is a milestone is preserving the countries ecosystem”, she said.
SBAPP is a regional project implemented in Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia and South Africa with regional coordination from SANBI and funded by Agence Francaise de Developpement (AFD) and Fonds Francais pour l’Environnement Mondial (FFEM).
