Research on Land Use and Land Cover (LULC) dynamics, and an understanding of the drivers responsible for these changes, are very crucial for modelling future LULC changes and the formulation of sustainable and robust land-management strategies and policy decisions. This study adopted a mixed method consisting of remote sensing and Geographic Information System (GIS)-based analysis, focus-group discussions, key informant interviews, and semi-structured interviews covering 586 households to assess LULC dynamics and associated LULC change drivers across the Dedza district, a central region of Malawi. GIS-based analysis of remotely sensed data revealed that barren land and built-up areas extensively increased at the expense of agricultural and forest land between 1991 and 2015. Analysis of the household-survey results revealed that the perceptions of respondents tended to validate the observed patterns during the remotely sensed data-analysis phase of the research, with 57.3% (n = 586) of the respondents reporting a decline in agricultural land use, and 87.4% (n = 586) observing a decline in forest areas in the district. Furthermore, firewood collection, charcoal production, population growth, and poverty were identified as the key drivers of these observed LULC changes in the study area. Undoubtedly, education has emerged as a significant factor influencing respondents’ perceptions of these drivers of LULC changes. However, unsustainable LULC changes observed in this study have negative implications on rural livelihoods and natural-resource management. Owing to the critical role that LULC dynamics play to rural livelihoods and the ecosystem, this study recommends further research to establish the consequences of these changes. The present study and future research will support decision makers and planners in the design of tenable and coherent land-management strategies.
Maize production in Malawi is limited mainly by low soil N and P. Improved fallows of N-fixing legumes such asTephrosiaandSesbaniaoffer options for improving soil fertility particularly N supply. The interactions ofTephrosiafallows and inorganic fertilizers on soil properties, N uptake, and maize yields were evaluated at Chitedze Research Station in Malawi. The results indicated that the level of organic matter and pH increased in all the treatments except for the control. Total N remained almost unchanged while available P decreased in all plots amended withT. vogeliibut increased inT. candidaplots where inorganic P was applied. Exchangeable K increased in all the plots irrespective of the type of amendment. The interaction of N and P fertilizers withT. vogeliifallows significantly increased the grain yield. The treatment that received 45 kg N ha−1and 20 kg P ha−1produced significantly higher grain yields (6.8 t ha−1) than all the other treatments except where 68 kg N ha−1and 30 kg P ha−1were applied which gave 6.5 t ha−1of maize grain.T. candidafallows alone or in combination with N and P fertilizers did not significantly affect grain yield. However,T. candidafallows alone can raise maize grain yield by 300% over the no-input control. Based on these results we conclude that high quality residues such asT. candidaandT. vogeliican be used as sources of nutrients to improve crop yields and soil fertility in N-limited soils. However, inorganic P fertilizer is needed due to the low soil available P levels.
The sustainable management of natural resources requires critical understanding of land use and land cover changes and how these changes impact natural resources and rural livelihoods. This study examined the impacts of LULC changes on natural resources and rural livelihoods of Central Malawi. The study used an integrated approach combining remote sensing, household surveys consisting of structured and semi-structured questionnaires, focus group discussions and key informant interviews. Local communities perceived that LULC changes have resulted in the decline of agricultural land (57.3%), crop production (82.8%) and forest cover (87.4%) In response to observed LULC changes, respondents deployed short-term coping strategies such as seeking piecework opportunities and the use of savings and credits. The study has provided evidence that LULC changes have led to significant losses in natural resources, with serious consequences for rural livelihoods in Dedza. The study has contributed to better understanding of the complicated human-environment interaction in Malawi.
Adverse impact of climate change on the environment has been widely reported. Malawi has not been spared from the adverse impacts of climate change as evidenced by recent floods and drought. This study was conducted to assess the impact of climate change on forest type, forest living biomass, basal area and number of stems. Holdridge Life Zone model and GAP Formind modified were used for the assessment. The results show that there are currently two forest vegetation zones occurring in Malawi (2011Malawi ( -2040. These include: tropical dry forest and tropical very dry forest. In mid-century (2041-2070) thorn woodland forest will emerge, while tropical dry forest will disappear in end-century (2071-2100). There will be a significant decrease in forest living biomass (1,000 kg ha -1 yr -1 ) and basal area (43.5%) from near century to end-century. On the other hand, there will be a significant increase (5 stems ha -1 yr -1 ) in number stems from near century to end-century. The study has demonstrated that future climate change will be conducive to growth and expansion of very dry forest vegetation zone, which causes positive effects on reforestation planning and adaptive strategies in this region. Therefore, the study suggests the following as some possible strategies to adapt climate change: promotion of natural regeneration of tree species, promotion of tree site matching, production and promotion of new tree seed varieties; and seed banking for drought resistant tree species.
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