BY SAMIE WAIKORI
Auki
MALAITA Provincial Government has set up a framework “Malautolo” to support tribal landowners in the province benefit while protecting of their forest.
Premier Daniel Suidani and his political adviser Celsius Talifilu announced this during an awareness programme held at Malu’u market over the weekend.
Suidani said his government recently passed an ordinance to strengthen the conservation law that discourages logging activity above 400m sea-level.
He said under this ordinance Malautolo was created to support tribal landowners by liaising with them with partners and developing their forest to protect them.
Explaining the framework, Talifilu said Malautolo was set up to fortify the conservation law that calls for a stop to logging activity above 400m sea-level.
He said the law was established for environmental reasons and MPG thought it’s important to take a step further by creating an ordinance to strengthen the law and its programme.
Also, with the ordinance and framework, they are to ensure a programme that can become a beneficial tool for development in Malaita province, Talifilu said.
He said with the idea, MPG developed the ordinance to strengthen its advocacy on the law and to find alternatives and non-destructive ways for people to benefit from their forests.
Talifilu said the establishment of Malautolo has created a pathway for MPG to work hand in glove with partners on carbon trading by facilitating development upon the ordinance.
“That’s how Malautolo framework has come about and lot of things to do with Winrock under the USAID SCALE-NRM program relate to the set-up,” he said.
Talifilu said there are people and institutions in the world that willing to support programs that deal with protection of forests. And there are markets in the world that willing to participate.
He said Malautolo framework is there and interested tribal landowners are call to work together with them to protect and benefit by looking after their resources.
On that note, Talifilu said the framework also created with ambition to try and look at ways on how to educate younger generations on cultural values and norm.
He said nowadays, responsibility to educate children on their cultures rests on parents, but it never happens.
Talifilu said MPG through Malautolo is looking at ways to educate younger generation on their traditional values that would go along with development.
