The gardener

HCPF staff trained four gardeners to take care of the tree nursery and taught them how to plant fast growing trees. Kotosarahy is one of these gardeners. Each month, he works in the tree nursery for one week (and four hours per day).

Always short of cash

The 48-year old Kotosarahy has eight kids and grows a bit of coffee, sweet potato, manioc and bananas. He also owns a small rice field but like everyone else in Vohimary he is always short of cash. The part time job at the nursery gave him a unique opportunity to earn some extra money.

“We have produced 34,000 seedlings of eucalyptus and acacia so far, and already planted 14,000 of them” he says full of pride and pointing to the land of his ancestors.

And true enough, there you can see countless little holes on some of the bare naked hillsides. Take a second look and you will even see the small trees in most of them.

While restoring degraded natural forest by planting native tree species, reforestation activities also aim to produce sustainable fuel wood.

Five years to wait

Timber from fast growing exotic tree species can be used for the construction of houses and for cooking. Already after five years, these new forests should provide local people with wood. 

Some 70 hectares of forests providing sustainable fuel wood – about 175,000 trees – will have been planted by the end of March 2012 in Vondrozo.

“Some sites are a bit ahead of schedule, other a bit behind. In general, we are very confident that we will reach our goals to provide at least 2500 households – about 15,000 people – with a sustainable alternative energy source,” says Maminiaina Rasamoelina, Coordinator of the HCPF.