Community Initiative for Self Reliance - CISER

Introducing Ecotourism Facilities at Nkhudzi Hill!

We’re excited to introduce the new ecotourism facilities being built at Nkhudzi Hill in Lake Malawi National Park. Facilitated by CISER in partnership with Lake Malawi National Park, and funded by GIZ Malawi through the MIERA Project, this initiative is already benefiting the surrounding communities. Over 70 households have earned wages through the involvement of local laborers and artisans. The project is set to be fully completed by the end of September 2024.

Once finished, visitors will enjoy a Resting Shelter, Ecosan Toilet with a shower room, and well-marked hiking trails with clear signage. The site will offer a perfect getaway for hiking, camping, picnics, and capturing stunning sunrise and sunset selfies with great views of Lake Malawi.

In addition to boosting local businesses and creating job opportunities, 25% of the park’s revenue will go to community projects under the Revenue Sharing Policy by Lake Malawi National Park.

The construction designs were crafted by Studio Designs team, who are also supervising the project.

Stay tuned for more updates and enjoy the progress photos!

Project Review Meeting for the USAID funded Restoring Fisheries for Sustainable Livelihoods in Lake Malawi (REFRESH) Project is underway at the Mapiri Country Lodge in Dedza organised by CISER.

In his opening remarks, Joseph Makwakwa, Executive Director for CISER thanked the team for the overwhelming hardworking spirit in implementing the project since 2019 and said the organisation has managed to achieve and complete a number of deliverables as per the project's work plans. He therefore congratulated the team for always being supportive and meeting targets for theproject and asked them to do the same in future projects.

He challenged the team to continue working hard in their portfolios in order to help grow the organisation which has done well in implementing the project in Mangochi district despite a number of challenges.

The team comprised of Project Technicians, Monitoring and Evaluation Officer, Programmes Manager, Finance and Administration Officer as well as support staff are attending the meeting.

REFRESH is a 5 year project with different interventions aimed at restoring fisheries biodiversity in the 8 districts along Lake Malawi which started in October 2019 and comes to an end in September, 2024.