The Department of Forestry impounds and confiscates illegally possessed and trafficked forest produce using powers provided by the Forest Act 1997. In doing so, both forest produce and any items used to traffick and/or transport illegal items such as charcoal are impounded and/or confiscated. Confiscated forest produce are then disposed by the department using procedures outlined in the Forest Act.

The Forest Act 1997 does not ban or prohibit production and sale of charcoal. However, realizing the degradation that comes with production of charcoal, the Forest Act 1997 clearly requires that individuals and organizations seeking to apply for a charcoal licence must provide documented evidence that the charcoal will be produced from a sustainably-managed forest. To date, Department of Forestry has issued a number of licenses for charcoal production licences, including the first license that was awarded to Kawandama Hills Plantation.

The Department of Forestry solicits expressions of interest (EoI) from local firms to engage in long-term agreements for plantation management. All EoIs are published in the local newspapers.

The Department of Forestry encourages individuals, communites and organizations wishing to raise tree seedlings to collect locally from their vicinities. However, when it is not possible to conduct local tree seeds collection, individuals, communities and organizations can alternatively buy tree seeds from the Forestry Research Institute of Malawi (FRIM) in Zomba. FRIM collects, certifies and sell tree seeds and seedlings. For more information, visit the FRIM website at: www.frim.org.mw.

Individuals wishing to export forest produce are required to pay two levels of fees. Firstly, they pay a non-refundable application fee of 2,000 Malawi Kwacha. After the application is approved, a client pays 50,000 Malawi Kwacha. All licences are valid for one government financial year. Please visit or contact the Department of Forestry Headquarters for more information.

The Department of Forestry issues Forest Produce Export Licences and Permits to individuals wishing to export forest products from Malawi to another country. This is centrally done at DoF headquarters in Lilongwe. The following documents are required before an export licence is issued:

• Business Registration Certificate (Issued by the Registrar of Companies and Businesses)
• Tax Clearance Certificate from the Malawi Revenue Authority (MRA), or MRA Certificate which indicates registration for Tax (Tax Payers Identification Number-TPIN).
• Verifiable Source of the forest products which individuals wish to export. Usually, we recommend that individuals get a written letter from the nearest forest office such as District Forest Office, or Extension Planning Area office where the forest product originated.