Gondwe, Monica Fides KalaghoCho, Moses AzongChirwa, Paxie W.Geldenhuys, Coert Johannes2020-09-142020Monica Fides Gondwe, Moses Azong Cho, Paxie Wanangwa Chirwa & Coert Johannes Geldenhuys (2019) Land use land cover change and the comparative impact of co-management and government-management on the forest cover in Malawi (1999-2018), Journal of Land Use Science, 14:4-6, 281-305, DOI: 10.1080/1747423X.2019.1706654.1747-423X (print)1747-4248 (online)10.1080/1747423X.2019.1706654http://hdl.handle.net/2263/76163Miombo Woodland is the major Land use/land cover with important ecological functions in Africa. In Malawi, government-management was designed to manage Woodlands. However, when illegal activities continued, Participatory Forest Management (co-management) in forest reserves was institutionalised for woodland sustainability. Currently, information on co-management mitigating deforestation and degradation is scant. This study assessed woodland/forest through Land use/land cover (LULC) classification across the country (Malawi); compared forest cover within and between strategies using 11 co-management and 12 government-management forest reserves across the country between 1999 and 2018. Overall accuracies were >90%. Woodland net loses 8.4% (4.39–3.39 million ha) were to Plantation, Grassland and Agriculture transition intensities. Agriculture net gains 9.6% (1.87–3.00 million ha) were from Grassland, Settlement and Woodland transitions for the whole Malawi. Forest cover within co-management and government-management indicated loses. Sustainable management of degraded woodlands, integrated Agriculture and monitoring is encouraged. Further interpretation of transitions is recommended.en© 2020 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group. This is an electronic version of an article published in Journal of Land Use Science, vol. 14, no. 4-6, pp. 281-305, 2020. doi : 10.1080/1747423X.2019.1706654. Journal of Land Use Science is available online at : https://www.tandfonline.com/loi/tlus20.MalawiLand use and land cover (LULC)Forest coverCo-managementGovernment managementMiombo WoodlandsPostprint Article