Chihana pledges land for Kasasile families

Second Vice President Enoch Chihana says the government has developed a four-point plan to address the plight of 407 households evicted from Kasasile in Nkhata Bay District, including relocating them to a new settlement. Chihana said this at Umthetho Cultural celebrations in Mzimba, where he disclosed that the government had identified land for the resettlement of the affected families. He said pending the relocation, the government would continue providing food assistance to the households until May next year. Chihana said the government would also consider enrolling some of the affected families in the Social Cash Transfer Programme and the Fertiliser Input Subsidy Programme. He said the government would uphold the rule of law while addressing the humanitarian crisis facing the evicted families. "The government is sympathetic to the affected communities and that is why it has made these firm decisions to resolve the matter," he said. President Peter Mutharika instituted a Cabinet Committee, led by Chihana, to resolve the Kasasile matter. Other members are Minister of Transport and Public Works Jappie Mhango, Minister of Lands Chimwemwe Chipungu and Minister of Defence Feston Kaupa. When contacted, one of the leaders of the evicted families, Mtungambera Harawa, asked for more time to comment on the government's latest position. In previous interviews, however, the group said it was willing to relocate to any suitable land for farming while demanding compensation for property lost during the eviction. The resettlement of people from customary land in Malawi is governed by various legal and policy frameworks, including the Land Acquisition Act of 2016, the Customary Land Act of 2016 and national resettlement policy frameworks. The families were evicted from their villages in 2024 after the Malawi Defence Force said the area they occupied fell within its firing range.

Times Malawi Times Malawi · Wire Report · 6 hours ago · 2 min read

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WIRE — Second Vice President Enoch Chihana says the government has developed a four-point plan to address the plight of 407 households evicted from Kasasile in Nkhata Bay District, including relocating them to a new settlement. Chihana said this at Umthetho Cultural celebrations in Mzimba, where he disclosed that the government had identified land for the resettlement of the affected families. He said pending the relocation, the government would continue providing food assistance to the households until May next year. Chihana said the government would also consider enrolling some of the affected families in the Social Cash Transfer Programme and the Fertiliser Input Subsidy Programme. He said the government would uphold the rule of law while addressing the humanitarian crisis facing the evicted families. "The government is sympathetic to the affected communities and that is why it has made these firm decisions to resolve the matter," he said. President Peter Mutharika instituted a Cabinet Committee, led by Chihana, to resolve the Kasasile matter. Other members are Minister of Transport and Public Works Jappie Mhango, Minister of Lands Chimwemwe Chipungu and Minister of Defence Feston Kaupa. When contacted, one of the leaders of the evicted families, Mtungambera Harawa, asked for more time to comment on the government's latest position. In previous interviews, however, the group said it was willing to relocate to any suitable land for farming while demanding compensation for property lost during the eviction. The resettlement of people from customary land in Malawi is governed by various legal and policy frameworks, including the Land Acquisition Act of 2016, the Customary Land Act of 2016 and national resettlement policy frameworks. The families were evicted from their villages in 2024 after the Malawi Defence Force said the area they occupied fell within its firing range.

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