Raiply Treats Communities To End Of Year Party
BY: DRAXON MALOYA
Over the new year’s weekend Raiply Malawi Limited , as in previous past years, as has become a tradition, accorded it’s surrounding communities to feast upon a display of various sporting activities and traditional dances patronized by performers drawn from Kasungu, Nkhata-Bay and Mzimba districts.
Apart from chilimika, malipenga, mganda, chisamba and gule-wamkulu the event also included some physical games such as running 100 metres, relay race, chair race, straight cycling, bottle race and the usual football, netball and volleyball.
Raiply organizes new year celebration activities annually to celebrate and reflect on the year gone by with communities and employees where during interaction it raised a special awareness that it is not its desire to see people getting imprisoned for cases committed in the forest management area, but will not hesitate to ensure everyone is lawful.
According to Raiply’s General Manager, Ravichandra Reddy, said this is time to reflect on how the wood industry faired in the previous year, while also rethinking strategies for the new year.
“We want to thank our employees for their hard work which has resulted in growth of the company from a 250 workforce factory to the current 2800 workers, with operational centers in Lilongwe , Blantyre, Lusaka and Tanzania, additionally, we want to commend surrounding communities for co-existing with us as you’re aware peace is conducive for an investment like ours, so we are happy with the prevailing environment,” said Reddy
In his remarks the Vice Chairperson of the organizing Committee, Johnson Kayira expressed satisfaction with this year’s arrangement which he said served a carefully prepared dish of dances and games hence hailed Raiply Malawi Limited for the idea, which allows both the young and old to appreciate sampling traditional dances, some stepped in old customs and associated with different tribes that make Malawi.
“There is beauty in variety and different tastes meet different cuisines, in this case, those that love sports have been entertained and some were players, reminding of old times. Some who pudding is dances have been taken down memory lane or transported to far places from Raiply such as Njombwa in Kasungu, where the main dish is chisamba and gulewamkulu; yet others drew satisfaction from chilimika and malipenga from Eleven Town Chituka in Nkhata-Bay.
Kayira also expressed satisfaction with the level of participation as bbot; children, women and men were not passive spectators attracting the General Manager, himself and the entire management team raced in the 100 meters while children from Compound C, which is an area of affluence were also part of the athletics team reflecting the spirit of unity.
A senior broadcaster working with Malawi Broadcasting Corporation (MBC) Alex Mwamgosi described the event as pressure cooler considering that the event was not held in 2020 and 2022 due to the COVID-19 restrictions.
“As a nation we have come from two years of COVID-19 and almost six months of anxiety created by cholera, giving communities a chance to mix, see play and performances takes the mind away from somber moods, it would be good to make it bi-annual,” said Mwangosi.
The most prized performers went away with K80,000.00 while the runners-up got envelopes containing K50,000.00 which is a motivation to both; old and the young showcasing their sskills the old ones reminding themselves of their old times while the young had a chance to learn what is not readily available in this environment.
However, on the business front Raiply Malawi Limited reported to have registered a loss of 56 hectares to fire while 234 hectares were damaged in the season just gone, illegal harvesting it is almost done away with thanking the judiciary and the police for ensuring proper law enforcement though proper investigations, sentencing and convictions.
On corporate social responsibility pledged to continue supporting education through desks donations, construction of classroom blocks, teachers’ houses and sports sponsorship and the provision of an ambulance service to Mzimba District Hospital.
Following the official launch of the 2022-2023 tree planting season by His Excellency the State President, Lazarus Macarthy Chakwera Raiply will plant 1000 hectares in the Chikangawa – , 200 hectares in Zomba Mountain and another 200 hectares in Chigumula forest Reserve.
