Communities Call for Maintenance of Dykes in Zomba

Some families affected by the recent disaster caused by floods in Zomba have asked authorities to start early maintaining dykes that were damaged by flooded rivers such as Likangala which destroyed property worth millions of money.

Davison Misomali, 38, from Khwimba village and Dorothy Labson, 50, from Chiyenda village in Traditional Authority Mwambo say maintenance of the dykes should start now to allow experts do a good job.

They claim that the dyke that got damaged at Likangala did not meet requirements due to limited time.

They were speaking on Wednesday when Plan Malawi with support from the Germany Federal Foreign Office launched a 100 million kwacha disaster response which is going to benefit over 1, 300 families affected by the disaster in the district.

The villagers also say authorities should ensure the dyke is at least 10 meters away from the river, saying the current dyke was constructed too close to the river.

But Zomba District Assistant Disaster Risk Management Officer, Florence Harawa, said the Council already conducted a post disaster needs assessment on all dykes in the district and the report was sent to DODMA but could not say when the maintenance work will commence.

Plan Malawi Project Manager, Sailes Banda, who led the distribution exercise said the aim of the support which include hygiene kits, blankets and roofing plastic sheets is to ensure the families get back to their normal life but also protect the people’s dignity.