Chipungu Says 132 Displaced Families in Kasungu Get Land to Rebuild Their Lives

Minister of Lands, Housing and Urban Development Chimwemwe Chipungu says the allocation of residential and agricultural land to 132 displaced families in Kasungu will help them rebuild their lives after more than 13 years of hardship.

The families have received land at Nthunduwala-Zithe Farm, where each household has been assigned plots for building a house and farming.

Speaking during the handover ceremony on Wednesday, Chipungu said the exercise was aimed at restoring the families’ livelihoods and giving them a secure place to settle.

“Today’s exercise is not merely about allocating land parcels. It is also about creating an opportunity for the affected families to rebuild their lives, restore their livelihoods and establish a foundation for a more secure future,” he said.

Chipungu said the Ministry had verified a register of 132 beneficiary households and assigned specific residential and agricultural plot numbers to ensure an orderly and transparent allocation process.

He urged the beneficiaries to respect plot boundaries and use the land for its intended purposes, including growing food and generating income.

The minister also called on traditional leaders, Kasungu District Council and surrounding communities to support the resettlement exercise and promote peaceful coexistence.

The Ministry’s technical team is expected to continue allocating land to the remaining beneficiaries, following the symbolic handover of the first five plots during the ceremony.

Camp chairperson Stanley Lyson said the families had endured difficult conditions for more than 13 years, with limited access to land for farming and building homes.

“This is great for us. We have struggled for many years and were hopeless after our families were displaced. We had perpetual hunger because we did not have farming land. We thank the government for listening to our cries and settling us,” Lyson said.

The Kasungu exercise marks the Ministry’s third major intervention to resolve a land dispute in recent months, following similar interventions at Kasasile in Nkhata Bay and Nantipwiri in Thyolo.