Tuesday 15 June, 2010
SUPPORTING THE PROMOTERS OF THE GREEN REVOLUTION
kilimokwanza@guardian.co.tz
Tuesday 15 June, 2010
EDITORIAL/PERSPECTIVE
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inside
Why agro-forestry is a promising option in TZ As global assessments predict crop yield reductions arising from climate change of up to 10 percent, the Tanzania 2007 National Adaptation Programme of Action Report predicts reductions of up to 84 percent in maize yield in the dry parts of the country.
A policy to make sense of landscaping
Time to revive agro-forestry is now
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HEN experts talk about agro-forestry, they will be discussing approaches to sustainable agriculture that leads up to new and wider market opportunities. They will talk about land stewardship, a habitat that allows for human, livestock, trees or shrubs and herbaceous agricultural crops to co-exist and ensure some form of ‘cross-fertilisation’. They will also deliberate on strategies towards improved water quality and diversified farm incomes resulting from intensive land-use management under which trees or shrubs are usefully combined with crops or livestock. As expected, the experts will differ on a number of points, but they will likely agree that agroforestry holds immense potential to help rural farmers increase their yields without spending an extra shilling on agriculture. The explanation here is simple, and it is that the whole process relies on ‘friendly’ trees and/or shrubs to supply nitrogen to the soil and keep it moist enough to support farming. According to most authoritative sources, agroforestry doesn’t convert agricultural land to forests or forested lands to agriculture. Rather, it is an intentional, intensive, integrated and interactive approach to land management that spans the breadth of the industries of each, combining with current land management practices to produce both familiar and new or unique crops. So, if indeed agro-forestry practices mainly seek to help landowners come up with a bigger variety of products, more reliable markets and bigger farm incomes, why not adopt them first thing in the morning? If indeed the major aim is to improve soil and water quality and tame erosion, pollution and damage due to flooding, we are surely talking about very worthwhile ventures. If the integrated practices subsumed under what is generally known as agro-forestry really enhance land and aquatic habitats for fish and wildlife and improve biodiversity while sustaining land resources for generations to come, isn’t that what modern agriculture is all about? If this is all that agro-forestry entails, then Tanzanians has a lot of experience practising it and all they should ask themselves is why they have suddenly lost steam. The practice was common in many parts of the country from the 1960s to around about the late 1970s, perhaps without many people attaching any scientific significance to it. It was without doubt most in vogue in coffee-growing regions like Arusha, Kilimanjaro and Mbeya, and traces remain. But it was also for decades an integral part of the lives of farmers elsewhere, particularly in the hilly or windy parts of cotton-growing regions like Mara and Shinyanga.
It is hard to tell what senior citizens in those regions would say if asked why such a hugely beneficial practice is being slowly but surely abandoned. It is likely, though, that many will say ever rising demand for land for human settlements and industries has eaten into the forest cover that used to supply the trees and shrubs that supported the agro-forestry of the good old days. However, like it or not, humankind’s very survival stands immense risk without agro-forestry being accorded a second chance to prove its worth. And this is of very particular importance and relevance in Africa, where the bulk of the population is engaged in a fragile agriculture at the mercy of natural forces like sun and rain. Tanzania is no exception here. In fact, many previously rich agricultural areas in the country have since turned so bare and infertile that it will take years of hard, intelligent work to make them productive enough again. Both the government and wananchi know this for a fact, and hence the zeal with which Kilimo Kwanza is being implemented. We would like to repeat what the experts have always known and said, including the fact that agroforestry has production and environmental benefits in that it minimises negative and maximises positive interactions between trees, other crops, livestock and humans. Combining trees or shrubs with agricultural crops means better use of soil resources and light, resulting in greater total production per area than conventional agriculture and forestry. Perhaps of greater relevance is that agro-forestry provides farmers short-term cash flow and extra income as they await the long-term tree crop. Any need to say more? Well, tree and shrub buffers intercept nutrient-rich ground and surface water, thus reducing the impact of flooding and wind erosion as well as providing for biodiversity, wildlife habitat, green space and aesthetics. Fortunately, Tanzania has an agro-forestry policy whose thrust is on adapting to climate change, halting land degradation and conserving on-farm biodiversity. But it is noted that various factors, among them local customs, make it hard for smallholder farmers to reap the benefits agro-forestry technologies. As we have seen, there is an immense lot our country stands to benefit by having a vibrant agro-forestry sector. However, it all depends on the speed with which we create conditions for the sector to thrive. The time to act is NOW.
Wallace Mauggo Editor
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Tanzanian’s agroforestry policy was crafted as a tool for improving livelihood in the country and tackling emerging local and global challenges. The policy creates a web of resilient land use practices that mitigate and adapt to climate change, halt land degradation and conserve on-farm biodiversity.
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Will Shs900bn budget help transform peasants into commercial farmers? PRESENTING views of experts on the proposals outlined in Finance Minister Mustafa Mkulo’s budget estimates, various orientations or approaches to the issue have been taken, either as it propels forward economic growth, or as it fails to uplift the condition of the majority of the people.
Tanzania ends financial year with $35 million shot from World Bank
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The World Bank’s Board of Executive Directors today approved an additional International Development Association (IDA) credit of US$35 million to Tanzania’s Agricultural Sector Development Program (ASDP), raising the total of Bank support to the Project to US$150 million.
8 Artwork & Design: KN Mayunga
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The Guardian KILIMO KWANZA
Tuesday 15 June, 2010
It is as if God created the tree to give a solution to all problems facing women in Africa. It is a nitrogen-fixing tree so that the burden of buying industrial fertilizer is not felt. Under the ‘miracle’ trees, vegetables can be grown even after rains have stopped falling. It is friendly to other crops meaning that it can coexist in the same farm with other crops. The tree also has medicinal values, its bark used to treat several women and ailments. Our Staff Writer LUCAS LUKUMBO went to Mbarali where the Mpogoro, whose botanical name is Faidherbia Albida, is fiercely protected and getting increasingly planted on more farms.
COVER STORY
Here comes the gender-sensitive tree
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he Bondei and Zigua tribe call it Mkololo or Mkora, the Fipa call it Mchese, the Gogo call it Mluma, to the Haya it is Murunda, Luguru, Mkongolo, Sangu and at times Hehe call it Mpogola while the Sukuma call it Nanda. The Hehe call it Mpogoro. The tree has a host of names, swhowing how widespread in the country it is becoming. That it grows in virtually all parts of the country is already peculiar. But for this tree to co exist so well with all other crops makes it simply unique. Contrary to the behaviour of most trees it, shades its leaves during rain season when all others are greening. And then its leaves sprout during dry the season when all other trees are shedding their leaves. The advantage of this, says Mathew Mapunda, a Senior Researcher with World Agro-forestry Centre (ICRAF) in Tanzania, is that the plant does not block sunshine for crops underneath but provides a source of nutrients to them. “The tree has therefore no competition with other crops grown together,” he says. Nitrogen is the main nutrient that plants need, which is not in sufficient supply in the soil. But Nitrogen is plentiful in the air, and therefore “fertilizer trees” like the Mipogoro can harness it from the atmosphere and take it where it is needed – in the soil for the crops. Mbarali district in Mbeya region is naturally endowed with such trees. The Principal Assistant Forest Officer there, Mr Melito Lipingu says the wonder tree is also a favourite for livestock as its fruits are good for dairy cattle. “It is environmentally friendly. Actually hunters just have to wait under a Mpogoro tree for the approaching animals. This is because during the dry season when the soils are dry, wild animals look for the Mpogoro trees to seek the green grass that sprouts under the trees. Lipingu says one can get timber out of the trees and that there are churches in the district which are more than one hundred years old built by the Mpogoro wood. “To most of the people living in Mbarali, the trees are sacred. Nobody would cut a Mpogoro tree and be left unpunished. People will report the matter to the authorities. In fact many villages have put in place regulations protecting the tree,” he said saying, “This is because they know the value of the tree.’’ “I myself have Mipogoro in my farm. I have an area dotted with Mipogoro and it is more productive than those areas without them,” Lipingu says. According to the forest officer, the district is of late facing an acute shortage of land after much of its area was included in the Ruaha National Park. “People have been forced to move from their original land near the park because the Ruaha National Park has been expanded,” he said. Lipingu says that there has been a lot of deforestation going on around the district after many people in the district were evacuated from areas around the Ruaha National Park. The official asks the government to put great emphasis on propagation of the wonder tree saying that it could to a great extent help mitigate the environmental
ICRAF Country Representative Dr Aichi Kitalyi (first from left) listens to villagers explain how they make the best of the Faiherbia albida (Mpogoro) in their maize farm as Senior Researcher from the organization Mathew Mpanda (right) looks on.
degradation and also minimize costs for the buying chemical fertilizers. “Leaving things as they are today could lead the district into environmental disaster,” he emphasized. Lipingu said experience in the area has shown that one acre of land could hold more than 30 Mipogoro trees grown safely along with other crops. “I myself am a witness to the good of this tree. I harvest twice the amount of maize in a farm where there are Mipogoro compared to the one which has no Mipogoro. He adds that the tree is self protecting in that it takes a very long time to dry up and become suitable for firewood and it is therefore difficult for people in need of quick money to exploit it as they like. Its thorns are a also a defensive mechanism to deter people from exploiting it indiscriminately. However the tree is known for dropping dry branches and by so doing, allows women to get firewood from around under the trees. Lipingu says the tree can be planted either by using seeds directly or seedlings. He explains that it is so easy to grow the tree that within a year, it can grow up to a height of two metres. An owner of the farm is responsible for the mipogoro trees and that it is “a big crime” for someone to cut Mpogoro in another’s farm. “We consider a serious deed for one to cut a tree even if it is on his or her own farm. People here believe that it is the
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INSETS: Left is Mbarali District Agricultural Extension Officer, Job Mlomo and the Ihea Village Chairman, Emanuel Kitamkanga. He has mobilized his members to safeguard Faidherbia Albida.
Mpogoro wood removed from a 105-years-old church is re-used to roof new
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The Guardian KILIMO KWANZA
houses. We usually escort people to where the tree is to be felled. All is done under the supervision of village officials
Mpogoro which brings them rain,” he stressed. He however said that in some areas where there are rice farms some farmers cut down Mipogoro for fear that birds which destroy their crop could camp near their farms. Many times however, the government intervenes by spraying to eliminate the destructive birds. The Mwakaganga Village Executive Secretary in Mbarali District, Keny Mlimbila confirms the ‘respect’ that the Mpogoro tree is given by farmers. “My people respect this tree more than anything. The tree is good in that it provides fertilizer for the farms and a source of rain. Many trees mean much rain,” he said. “We make restrictions for Mpogoro felling. We only allow a person to cut Mpogoro when a tree branch is about to fall down. Once some people were using the tree for brick making, but we have stopped them and instead allowed them to use rice husks. He said there is a long process to follow for one to cut Mpogoro. One has to apply for cutting a branch or the entire tree to the ward authorities after which a letter is written to the Forest officers in the district. The district forest officials then reply to the ward authorities either permitting the felling of the tree or not. If permitted the applicant is notified. “That is not enough. We usually escort
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people to where the tree is to be felled. All is done under the supervision of village officials,” he said. “We used to fine a person 3,000/- for cutting a tree, but now we have asked for a permission from the district authorities to raise fine 10,000/-. This is a small amount but it is a good start. We might increase the fine later on. He says many prefer the fertilizer tree so that they can escape using the industrial fertilizer which in many cases is very expensive. They also fear “to burn” the fertility of the soils. So far they have planted some 11,000 trees, most of which are Mipogoro. Isaya Mbule of Ndolela B, a sub-village of Mwakaganga says by growing on the same Mpogoro farm with maize he is able to harvest between around 20 bags of maize per acre. He is able to use the leaves and fruits of the tree as food for his animals. In areas where there are no Mpogoro the harvest is normally between five and six bags of maize, he testifies. Mzee Abeid Mgombawano (73) says he has been harvesting bumper crop under Mipogoro from the past 35 years. He says he feeds his goats and cattle with the leaves dropping from the trees and its fruits adding that in hard times, the Mpogoro’s pods are used as washing soap. He is happy that he gets to the tune of 16 bags of maize in one acre while in a farm without the trees, he gets only nine bags of maize. He is using the bark of the tree for several medicinal purposes including “casting out demons.” Sophia Mtambalishe, Chairperson of ‘Ndolela C’ sub-village in Mwakaganga village says as a woman she benefits very much from the tree. She says she grows vegetables under the trees where most of the time it is wet because of the decayed leaves from the Mpogoro. Sophia says women are against those who cut the Mipogoro clandestinely, saying that women in the village are all out for protecting the wonder tree. Zuberi Lutanile, a villager says that one is assured of a bumper yield if one cultivates in a farm containing Mipogoro. “Last year there was a prolonged drought. We however got some bags of maize. Those who cultivated outside the Mipogoro tree did not get anything,” he said. Abdallah Majalis, also villager says he has been using the tree for both agricultural and treatment purposes. Many of the skin diseases can be treated using the bark of the tree while the tree could be used in treating poultry diseases, he says. Ihea Village Chairman in Mbarali District, Emanuel Kitamkanga says that he has mobilized his fellow villagers so that they could protect the Mipogoro and at the same time plant more of them. He says he has so far planted some 4,500 plants. Villagers now realize that the Mpogoro trees are their saviours. They fine anyone tempering with Mpogoro tree some 10,000/. He says at present the village owns 2,000 hectares of tree plantation containing 4,500 trees many of which are Mpogoro. Ziada Mwenda, a villager in Ihea confirms that in the first three months this year there was no rain in the village but the village was able to harvest a reasonable amount of maize under the Mipogoro. She says the tree bark is useful for treatment of many diseases which befall children. Sebastian Muhesi says the tree has many branches which at times fall down and women and children pick them for firewood. He says where there is Mpogoro, the soils are soft compared to a place where there is none. “It is therefore easy to till under the Mipogoro. Because our women are the ones who till most of our farms, it reduces the burden of cultivating in hard soils. “Even when you want to hire your Mipogoro studded farm it is more expensive. An acre of a farm with Mipogoro is hired at 30,000/- per season compared to a farm without them fetching 15,000/- per acre per season,” he says. He said a Roman Catholic Church at Madibila area in the district which was constructed in 1905 using the Mipogoro is still surviving. “Just recently the church was renovated, but the Mipogoro wood was reused to roof new houses,” he confirmed. The Mbarali District Agricultural Extension Officer, Job Mlomo confirms that the tree is environmentally friendly. He says the proof that the tree is a saviour is when the district was saved from famine this year. “In February this year the rain stopped. We still harvested some maize under the Mipogoro. He called for an integrated agricultural development programme to promote the wonder tree. “All sectors which have a bearing on forestry should forge a joint programme to make sure that Mpogoro is developed. The tree is not only good for providing organic fertilizer but is also a very big boost for rural women who are languishing in abject poverty, because it creates an good environment for them to grow food crops while at the same time providing them with firewood which in many places is hard to comeby,” Mlomo says. He has subsequently asked people living in areas where Mipogoro sprout to go to Mbarali to witness how it benefits people and study ways of multiplying it in their areas.
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Tuesday 15 June, 2010
COVER STORY
FOUR agriculture gurus in Tanzania have compiled a detailed report advocating agroforestry as a robust option for its agricultural strategy. The experts Aichi Kitalyi of the World Agro-forestry Centre ICRAF Tanzania, Gerson Nyadzi of the Millennium Village Project, Mary Lutkamu from the Ministry of Agriculture, Food Security and Cooperatives, Benjamin Gama, a Soil Scientist, Consultant, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania have strongly argued that adoption of agroforestry could to a great extent ensure food security in the country, conserve the environment while at the same time alleviating the government ever increasing budget on fertilizer subsidies. Our Staff Writer LUCAS LUKUMBO reports on their scientific dossier...
Why agro-forestry is a promising option in TZ the past three years fertilizer prices have more than doubled. Agro-forestry systems offer cheaper sources of soil nutrients through deep soil extraction and nitrogen fixation if this can be incorporated into national agricultural development programmes. Policies to help produce food more cheaply and in environmentally sustainable ways will benefit the majority of farmers and the country as a whole. Current policies do not take advantage of these promising new technologies. Nitrogen is the main nutrient that plants need, which is in short supply in the soil. But it is abundant in the atmosphere, and “fertilizer trees” can capture it from the atmosphere and make it available to crops. World Agro-forestry Centre (ICRAF) and partners in Southern Africa region (including Tanzania) have developed four related fertilizer tree options for soil improvement. These fertilizer tree options include sequential fallow rotation of nitrogen-fixing trees with cereal crops; fertilizer tree/cereal inter-cropping managed as coppiced fallow; annual relay fallow intercropping of shrubs with cereals; biomass transfer using Gliricidia or Tithonia leaves.
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s global assessments predict crop yield reductions arising from climate change of up to 10 percent, the Tanzania 2007 National Adaptation Programme of Action Report predicts reductions of up to 84 percent in maize yield in the dry parts of the country. Furthermore fertilizer prices in Tanzania rose by 250 percent in the last two years. These are alarming findings in the four experts’ report entitled ‘New climate, new agriculture: How agro-forestry contributes to meeting the challenges of agricultural development in Tanzania.’ Agroforestry options identified include low-cost technologies that improve livelihoods but also lessen the environmental impacts of agriculture, according to the report. Ranking low in economic and human development indicators, Tanzania is at high risk of failing to feed itself, with over 70 percent of its people depending on rain-fed agriculture for their livelihood. Tanzania is listed among thirteen African countries worst affected by climate change impacts and vulnerability and having the least adaptive capacities. A review of the status of Tanzania’s Agricultural Sector Development Programme (ASDP) notes that the country is lagging in achieving its targets on reducing poverty and food insecurity and in achieving the Millennium Development Goals targets. Tanzania has a challenge of revitalizing her agricultural sector by improving the natural resource base which includes soil, water and biodiversity. Agroforestry can offer robust options to improve productivity and achieve environmental sustainability. The National Agro-forestry Strategy prepared in 2004 envisages at least four million rural households adopting and benefiting from agro-forestry practices in a sustainable manner by 2025. Its goal is that by 2020, agro-forestry technologies are adopted and contribute to improved livelihood of 60 percent of resource for poor households in the country. This goal complements the national development strategy framework “MKUKUTA”, which emphasizes poverty reduction and increasing household income while conserving the environment. The major components of agro-forestry systems are trees and/or shrubs (woody perennials including bamboo) deliberately retained or planted on the farmland; agricultural crops including food and cash crops; and livestock. There are many biological, ecological and economic interactions among the components, which makes it a resilient land use practice to mitigate and adapt to climate change, halt land degradation and enhance biodiversity conservation. Agro-forestry is therefore a powerful tool for tackling the emerging global and local challenges, the report says. Agro-forestry has been in practice in
TOP: A young girl carrying firewood she has collected from the falling branches of Faiherbia Albida at Ihea village, Mbarali District, Mbeya Region.
Tanzania and elsewhere in the world for hundreds of years. In Tanzania there are several traditional agro-forestry systems which include among others the Chagga home-gardens, the related Mara region home-gardens known as “Obohochere” and the traditional Wasukuma pastoral system called “Ngitili”. The uniqueness of traditional agroforestry systems is the maintenance of multi-layered systems with annual and perennial plants, which imitate natural ecosystems. Agro-forestry research and development activities in the country have been going on for more than 30 years. National institutions including research centres and universities have conducted trials to screen exotic and indigenous tree and shrub species for suitability for different agroforestry technologies. Over the past 20 years, the World Agroforestry Centre (ICRAF) in collaboration with several national research institutions, the Government extension service, NGOs and CBOs, has developed several technologies which are now benefiting thousands of farmers in Shinyanga and Tabora Regions and elsewhere in the country. Proven technologies include fertiliser trees and biomass transfer for soil fertility improvement, rotational woodlots, indigenous and exotic trees for food security and health, trees for livestock feed security and trees for reclamation and enrichment of traditional land use systems. A number of these technologies are transforming lives in different parts of the country. Multi-strata agro-forestry, a multicropping system with different crop and tree species is predominant in high rainfall areas and where land pressure is high. Associated agro-forestry systems include fodder shrubs, high value fruits, spice agro-forestry and village/farm forestry plantations. In the drier areas where land
is not a major limitation suitable agroforestry systems include improved fallow, rotational woodlots, silvi-pasture systems and indigenous fruits from natural forests. Biomass transfer is another agroforestry option used to enrich soils using either the nitrogen fixing trees or other macro-nutrient rich species which are rich in phosphorus. Biomass transfer is best in high value crop production systems such as vegetables.
Cost-effectives The use of both fertilizer and improved seeds in Tanzania is very low compared to other countries. While Tanzanian farmers use an average of 9 kg/ha annually of nitrogen fertilizer the average for Malawi farmers is 27 kg N/ha, and Vietnam 365 kg N/ha. However, the low percentage use of fertilizer in Tanzania could be improved through the adoption of a sustainable supply mechanism, proper distribution, handling and use of fertilizer, the report says. A fertilizer subsidy programme was reintroduced in the 2003/2004 crop season to swiftly increase crop production. Government efforts to overcome the soil fertility problems have been only partially successful. Despite the government’s involvement in distributing fertilizers and seeds to smallholders and encouraging private traders to distribute the same, less than 20 percent of smallholder farmers use fertilizer in Tanzania. For 2008/2009 the government issued agricultural input vouchers (fertilizers and improved seeds) to 2,600,000 farm families out of over 4,000,000 in the countryside. The total cost of the programme for 2007-08 was $18 million (Tshs 21 billion). In 200809 the subsidy is set at $26 million (Tshs 31 billion), the report says. However, skyrocketing oil prices have strained every stage of food production, from fertilizer to tractors to transport. In
BOTTOM: A woman passes by a just harvested maize farm under Faidherbia albida (Mipogoro) in Ihea District, Mbeya region recently. (Photos: Lucas Lukumbo and ICRAF Tanzania)
The Guardian KILIMO KWANZA
Tuesday 15 June, 2010
Economics of fertiliser trees According to a research, a two-year improved fallow of Sesbania produces 100 to 250 Kg of Nitrogen per hectare. The authors went further and estimated that a million smallholder farmers with 0.2 ha each of fertiliser trees can fix an equivalent of 20,000 tonnes of biomass nitrogen fertiliser, which translate to a saving of up to USD 5.8 million per year on government fertiliser support programme. Fertilizer trees have a positive environmental impact. The beauty of fertilizer trees is not just the increase in food production alone, but also in the conservation of the natural resource base and the protection of the environment. Fertilizer trees can provide up to 10
COVER STORY
tons of wood biomass per hectare, greatly reducing the burden of carrying firewood long distance and the time women spend searching for wood energy. Fertilizer trees provide alternative sources of stakes for curing tobacco and help reduce deforestation of the miombo woodlands. Today these woodlands are being deforested at over 400,000 hectares annually in Tanzania. Fertilizer trees contribute to mitigating the effects of climate change by sequestering up to 2.5 to 3.6 tons of carbon per hectare per year. It improves soil aggregation, enhanced water infiltration and water holding capacity, which can reduce the risk of crop failure during drought years. Fertilizer trees suppress weeds and reduce soil compaction, thus reducing the burden of weeding. This aspect of fertilizer trees provides a big incentive for women who are traditionally responsible for weeding the family’s fields.
Biomass Farmers grow vegetables widely during the dry season in wetlands in Tanzania but declining soil fertility is a major challenge to many of them. Biomass transfer uses the nutrient-rich leaves of agro forestry species, usually planted in the uplands, as fertilizer for the production of high-value vegetable crops, and an extra maize crop in the lowlands during the dry season. This offers farmers the opportunity to supplement their incomes by growing cash crops that command high prices in urban markets. It also integrates agricultural production in upland and lowland areas. Biomass transfer increases food production and income for farmers. It also helps smallholder farmers to produce diverse and high value crops like ginger, garlic, cabbage and onions. Production takes place during off season when farm produce attracts higher prices. Experiments show gains of net profit ranging between $700 and $1,000 per ha compared with $366 for control plots, with the possibility of increasing production to 23 crops per season. It has also the potential for integration with fish farming. Value addition on agro-forestry tree products Value addition means improving the quality of a product through sorting, processing, preserving, and packaging to meet the taste and preferences of different consumers or markets. Value addition is also referred to as Post-harvest Transformation. Advantages of adding value to agroforestry products include, providing job opportunities in cottage industries increasing shelf-life of the products, bringing better prices and allowing sales later in the year at higher prices. This also brings food security to farmers. It also reduces bulk of products like fresh fruits, fodder, medicine (roots, bark, leaves) and easier transport and storage of the products. Another aspiration is accessing new niche markets, which offer higher and more stable prices, thus improving product sales. Another advantage arising out of agro-ferestry ia that indigenous fruit trees provide food from the wild during periods of hunger. Their fruits often mature at the time when maize shortage is most critical. Although research has been done in Tanzania in domestication of wild fruits, it is important to note that indigenous fruits such as kiwi fruit and macadamia nut became popular on global markets through domestication efforts. Efforts by World Agro-forestry centre and its partners in western Tanzania have raised the value of several species of miombo indigenous fruits. An end-of-project impact assessment showed that more than 2500 women from more than 50 women groups are employed in fruit processing enterprises in western Tanzania. Their products include well packed raw fruits, juices, jam, jelly and marmalade, and have been promoted in national and international trade fairs, and some local supermarkets. Looking at the larger picture, one can see some significant milestones in the domestication initiative. Indigenous fruits have changed from being a “snack” food to a main food source. Also indigenous fruits provide income generation opportunities for rural women in processing and enterprise development. Conservation and selection of indigenous fruit trees avoids “eating up” the opportunities of future generations in regions where they are being lost to deforestation. Other benefits Agroforestry trees provide valuable products and services such as timber and fire wood, fruits, vegetables and nuts, fodder, medicine, essential oils and gums, materials for local handcrafts, forage for honey bees and biomass for soil fertility improvement. However, most of these products are either consumed on site or sold to the local markets without adding any value. Further more, with trade liberalization and global food chains in place now, raw agroforestry products without value addition (initial processing) won’t be able to penetrate distant urban and overseas markets.
Distant markets are more demanding in terms of quality and food safety, reliable and sufficient supply of high quality produce and timely delivery. Rural farmers position can however, be improved through local or centralized value adding, diversification to high-value production and linking them to assured markets. A large and growing body of scientific evidence indicates that climate change impact is a major threat to sustainable development and achieving millennium development goals. For Tanzania, predictions show temperature increase ranging from 2.1 to 40C, with central and western parts of the country showing higher changes. Predictions show that areas with bimodal rainfall pattern will experience increased rainfall of 5% – 45% and those with unimodal rainfall pattern will experience decreased rainfall by five percent – 15 percent. This shifting weather regime will have many adverse effects on agricultural productivity including more frequent droughts, changes in planting dates of annual crops, increased fungal outbreaks and insect infestations causing decline in crop yields, reduction in ecosystem integrity and resilience, and declining in biodiversity. Both national and global assessments describe the Central Plateau ecological zone of Tanzania as one of the most vulnerable to climate change and variability. This vast area of drylands covering most of Central regions- Dodoma and Singida as well as western regions of Tabora, Shinyanga, Kigoma and Mwanza falls in the priority areas for scaling-up of agroforestry technologies. Such agroforestry technologies have been proven to increase farming systems’ resilience by improving agricultural productivity. The scientists finally note that the various landscape assessment tools pioneered by ICRAF create a good understanding of landscape biophysical and social relationships, which are pillars of agroforestry land use practices. Constraints to the scaling up of agroforestry despite its excellent performance were identified: The widespread adoption of agro-forestry technologies by smallholder farmers is constrained by local customs, institutions and policies at the national level. This is because technological innovation is important for widespread adoption, but not in isolation, the report says. Local and national policies need to be refined to incorporate agro-forestry components. Soil fertility management options using fertilizer trees require skills in terms of management of the trees. The capacity for implementing agroforestry technologies will need to be built at the national level. One of the greatest constraints of some agro-forestry technologies is the lack of access by farmer’s of quality seeds. Unlike the seeds of annual crops in which established institutions exist to promote them and private sector organizations have been engaged in their multiplication and distribution, there is little or no institutional structure to make the seeds of agro-forestry available “off the shelf”. Such structures and institutions need to be developed and this process can be “kick-started” through a public sector investment (for a limited period) while allowing time for the private sector to take up the commercial opportunity of such a venture. The human capacity, infrastructure and institutional support for agro-forestry are not as well developed as for annual crop technologies. Such missing supports include well-developed input and output markets to enhance access of small-holder farmers to ensure that they get the price premium for their crop produce. In many cases, the widespread adoption of agroforestry requires appropriate policies at the national and local level, but this has been hampered by a lack of local scale data on impacts of climate change on agriculture and environment. Areas for coordination include,
Technical aspects: This includes reduction of national expenditure on nitrogen mineral fertilizers by 25 percent to 50 percent annually by exploiting the synergy between fertilizer trees and mineral fertilizers. Also subsidising mineral fertilizers under the ASDP and DADPS and integrating fertilizer tree seeds, improved crop varieties as integral part of the inputs package under the Programme to ensure sustainable soil fertility replenishment would be desirable.. The other approach is to provide support for the implementation of the national agro-forestry strategy and the targeting of priority scaling up areas in Tanzania. It is also important to provide more training opportunities to government agricultural extension staff on agroforestry technologies to enhance their competence to provide information and scale up the technologies to farm communities. Support for agro-forestry products markets and marketing infrastructure is also essential. So is participatory assessment of vulnerability to climate change and local adaptation measures. There must be also capacity building at all levels on climate change impacts on the agriculture sector and adaptation strategies.
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A policy to make sense of landscaping
Tanzania’s agro-forestry policy aims to bring about orderly multiple use of farmland with planting of fertiliser trees
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By Alpha Nuhu
anzanian’s agroforestry policy was crafted as a tool for improving livelihood in the country and tackling emerging local and global challenges. The policy creates a web of resilient land use practices that mitigate and adapt to climate change, halt land degradation and conserve on-farm biodiversity. The authors assert that the widespread adoption of agroforestry technologies by smallholder farmers in Tanzania is constrained by local customs, institutions and national policies. Unlike the seeds of annual crops where established institutions exist to promote them and private sector organisations manage their multiplication and distribution, there is little or no institutional structure to make agroforestry seeds available. The human capacity, infrastructure and institutional support for agroforestry are not as well developed. The policy focuses on the promotion of fertiliser trees and other integrated soil fertility management approaches in order to make the most efficient use of expensive mineral fertilisers, subsidise mineral fertilisers under the Agricultural Sector Development Programme (ASDP) and District Agricultural Development Plans (DADP), integrate fertiliser tree seeds, and improve crop varieties as an integral part of the inputs package of the Programme to ensure sustainable soil fertility replenishment. Other areas are to provide support to implement the national agroforestry strategy and target priority areas to scale up, provide more agroforestry technology training opportunities to government agricultural extension staff to help them provide information and scale up the technologies to farm communities, support agroforestry products markets and marketing infrastructure, do participatory assessments of vulnerability to climate change and local adaptation measures and build capacity at all levels to mitigate and adapt to climate change impacts on the agriculture sector, among others. The country’s agro-forestry policy has become a focal entry point for development and for environmental stewardship, notably as climate change adaptation and mitigation has risen in importance. While there is a prominent policy role at the national level, policies and institutions are also being influenced by simultaneous movement towards globalisation and localisation, as well as by changes in resource governance processes, institutions and participants. Forestry experts say in order for agroforestry to increase its contribution to meeting evolving needs of farmers and society within this changing operational and policy environment, it needs to improve its ability to evolve within and to influence this
changing policy context. The focus is to reach and help meet the needs of smallholders and groups who are poor, marginalized, and most vulnerable to negative impacts of economic and environmental change. They say while many policy conditions must be understood and acted upon within specific national to local contexts, there are general principles related to global transitions and national to local responses. The Forestry Policy Guidelines were first developed by the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) in the early 1980s laying emphasis on a number of scales – farms and landscapes -- and sectors – agriculture, forestry, and environment, for example. Agro-forestry is a collective name for land-use systems and technologies, where woody perennials (trees, shrubs, palms, bamboos) are deliberately used on the same land management unit as agricultural crops and/or animals, either in some form of spatial arrangement or temporal sequence. While this initial definition emphasized agro-forestry as a farm level practice, more recently agro-forestry research and development has also come to view agro-forestry as a landscape level system which can play significant roles in provision of environmental services and livelihoods for communities. “It’s is important to understand that agro-forestry is viewed both as an approach to land use and as a set of integrated land use practices,” says Charles Mwakalukwa, a forestry officer. From a farm economy point of view, agro-forestry practices have been adapting and evolving in response to changing needs induced by demographic, economic and environmental transitions and additional driving forces in various regions of the world, he explains.
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It’s is important to understand that agro-forestry is viewed both as an approach to land use and as a set of integrated land use practices
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The Guardian KILIMO KWANZA
At the landscape level, agro-forestry is seen by some as an essential response to dwindling natural forest and woodland resources due to expansion of agriculture, logging, restrictions on community management and use of forests. In Tanzania, agro-forestry is thus increasingly being planned at landscape scale to contribute to needed ecosystem services such as watershed protection, biodiversity conservation, and soil health. “There’s now substantial scope for agroforestry to play a strategic role in helping to meet important national development objectives in many countries and regions of the world. Agro-forestry is uniquely placed in terms of related mitigation options as it can be designed and implemented to be compatible with adaptation strategies, and can have substantial co-benefits in terms of biodiversity, watershed conservation, employment and income generation Tanzanian researchers say experiences have uncovered a number of factors that hinder the practice of agro-forestry, affecting directly farmer and community decisions while others are more indirect. The country’s policy identifies key factors hindering the practice of agro-forestry as access to agro-forestry inputs/resources, land tenure, tree tenure, water, seeds and credit. Others are agro-forestry production or management issues, and marketing of agro-forestry products and services. Experts with the World Agro-forestry Centre (ICRAF) say many of the constraints listed above are clearly linked to specific policy areas, while others may be more difficult to trace to specific policy needs. “In order to encourage a level of agroforestry that society desires, it is necessary for policy interventions to develop incentives or mechanisms by which this can happen,” says Andy Coleman. Examples of specific policy areas that address the broad constraints noted above include regulations on international transfer of germplasm for testing and improvement, public investment in generating high quality material for reproduction, public sector facilitation of private sector seed collection, multiplication and distribution of agro-forestry germplasm. Other constraints are the promotion of private sector credit for agro-forestry, increasing supply of long-term credit for smallholder agriculture and the promotions of capital flows to agro-forestry product marketing and processing businesses. To enhance policy implementation on the practice and impact of agro-forestry, there is need to form partnerships, local to international. “There’s no such thing as an agroforestry policy document. Nor is there an existing single ‘policy space’ for assessing or coordinating the range of policies that have impacts on agro-forestry and all the laws, orders, rules, regulations and investments with which they are associated,” Coleman explains.
The Guardian KILIMO KWANZA
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Tuesday 15 June, 2010
BUDGET REVIEW
Will Shs900bn budget help transform
The Guardian KILIMO KWANZA
Tuesday 15 June, 2010
BUDGET REVIEW
peasants into commercial farmers?
All they need from the government – apart from improved infrastructure which is strictly speaking the main focus of the budget estimates – is elimination of crop cess, which stood at three per cent after being cut from five per cent in the last budget estimates, 2009/10. That is what certain experts were demanding before the budget, and what they got was elimination of VAT from all inputs to farming and crop processing. That would suffice as budgetary measure if farming as a whole was already commercial in character but there are ‘transitory conditions’ where this tax consideration has to be beefed by directly funding needs of the small producer sector. That is what constitutes the redistributive function of the budget, and it is this aspect which analyses like that of the TGNP program director see the budget as insufficient, despite that there was a huge rise in budgetary allocations to agriculture, apart from the tax breaks for farm machinery and importing animal feeds, etc. Funding was raised from 666.9billion/- in the past financial year to 903.8bn/- in this fiscal exercise – much of it to meet peasant sector requirements. Examining the tax breaks in class terms, innovative farmers will see greater advantage than those expecting that the government should also seek markets for their produce, though this element is likely to cripple uncompetitive processing industry that could be on the rise in many areas. In the final analysis it is precisely this undercutting of peasant hold on the land, the extent to which it will free up land for other activities which create regular income (not seasonal earnings) that would alter the demand structure, and make processing stable and expanding from one year to another. Much of processing has so far been an effort to take the market from imports, relying on slogans like ‘Buy Tanzanian’!
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By Miki Tasseni RESENTING views of experts on the proposals outlined in Finance Minister Mustafa Mkulo’s budget estimates, various orientations or approaches to the issue have been taken, either as it propels forward economic growth, or as it fails to uplift the condition of the majority of the people. That can be said to be the dividing line in budget commentary, with bridges of an analytical or sentimental sort (that is, positive feeling despite negative sentiment about the thrust of the budget) in this or that instance. But on the whole there is ample praise from business-minded analysis – and negative review from radical groups. One such criticism was elicited from Prof. Marjorie Mbilinyi, a veteran educator and researcher in Development Studies at the University of Dar es Salaam, and for years a senior program officer at the Tanzania Gender Networking Program (TGNP), what may actually be called her life’s work. Her comments were summarized by the ethic that the budget focus should be on decent jobs – a position that
These small time farmers may take long before they realise any benefits from Mr Mkulo’s measures
has been emphasized by the International Labour Organization for some years, on account of the fact that global free markets have tended towards casual employment, to cut on various overheads. How this squares up with economic growth is a problem, as it requires public sector predominance. Prof. Mbilinyi in a way represents the analytical difficulty encountered among various experts examining what the budget contains for agriculture, meaning the sector as a whole but more specifically the peasantry. This is also the Achilles heel of the whole Kilimo Kwanza thrust, a point that isn’t sufficiently emphasized by authorities dwelling on the policy, as it would constitute a point of antagonism with various quarters whose institutional roles are tied up with defending or articulating interests of the peasants – the main voting bloc in a political sense. In that case Kilimo Kwanza is articulated on the basis of a generality split into two antagonistic parts, of the old (peasantbased farming) and the new (commercial thrust into agriculture to change its age-old peasant character). These approaches are encapsulated in two programs one of which has now been altered to take a different focus, namely the old Mkukuta I (first phase of the Economic
Growth and Poverty Reduction Program) and the Agricultural Sector Development Program (ASDP). It is the latter that has now shifted to Kilimo Kwanza, targeting a far more intensive engagement of the business sectors, whereas ASDP was more or less tied up with a wide participatory role of local governments and cooperative unions, to mobilize peasants for raising crop acreage and paying for inputs after harvest. It doesn’t require wide experience as a local administrator to realize that it is a thankless job to seek such dues. Sorting out Mkukuta hitch In other words there was something inherently a failure in the whole organization of ASDP and it was reflected in the Mkukuta I program, that both of them were public sector oriented in the sense of central government trying to fund development at the local level. On the basis of economic data or implications that are learnt more or less gradually, the government came to the conclusion that it was getting nowhere with both programs, as in the final analysis their success was tied up with ‘changing attitudes.’ And that is what can’t be changed – and not just attitudes at the peasant level but all the way from central government to ward authorities, in passing by regional,
district and other organs. So the most important unannounced aspect about Kilimo Kwanza is that it is a shift to a different strategy because the ASDP and its income elevation aspect, Mkukuta I had failed to change the sort of attitudes that keep peasants backward. The sort of funding that the World Bank and its network of researchers call ‘investment’ in the agricultural sector did not constitute in transformative capital which helps people to move from one mode of doing things to another, but rather confirm the usefulness of what they are doing already. For instance any cash disbursed by the central government is unlikely to be paid at the district level, for everyone feels it is their right to receive such consideration from their elected leadership. It is this sort of background that constitutes the necessary intuition of what is going on in upper levels of government in bringing about Kilimo Kwanza, that the government needs a different sort of agency for the better use of land to raise exports and ensure the security of food supplies in the country. It means that most of the land is mapped out and titles given to peasants, so that they are much more free with that they do with the land, when it is not ‘forbidden’ to sell one’s land to an investor. The
public authorities however do not champion this orientation per se, merely facilitate it, while sticking to public sector views that land should remain in hands of peasants – and those who sell believe they are clever.
Unlocking the land In Scriptural terms it is only when land is sold as if it is ‘sin’ on the part of an individual is it possible that the policy can be adopted without shaking the foundations of political unity and constitutionality as it is comprehended. The gathering pace of alienation of land and urbanization of various sections of society is a basic need for societal detribalization that facilitates an alteration of attitudes in relation to labor in particular, which also makes land available that would otherwise be used for peasant production. But this dimension of policy of projection of economic activity is what could be said to constitute ‘economic intelligence’ rather than policy, as officially the principal target is uplifting the peasantry! When examining the budget proposals, this reality comes up stark in the face, as how the government has an easy day catering for large farmers now taking up land and starting biofuel production in various areas, or trying out improved seeds, genetically modified grains, etc.
Kilimo Kwanza goals What strikes the eye is how in economic terms all this is preparatory for a profound shift from the sort of environment that the country has had for most of the post-independence years. The basic statistic which economists often ignore is that from early 1962 to early 1967 growth in the agriculture sector averaged at 13.5 per cent a year, and slumped to 3.0 per cent annually for the rest of the first phase administration, up to late 1985. During the second phase when crop marketing was freed from cooperatives control and crop boards, growth inched up to 3.5 per annum for the ten year period of ‘rukhsa’ techniques of crop sector management. Growth had retreated to the fabled 3.0 per cent yearly for the seven years of the third phase government to late 2003, before this statistic was compiled in 2003 – but even the Economics Department at the Hill, who noticed it, seldom refer to it. What is hence required in agriculture, and what is largely promised by the policy thrust in Kilimo Kwanza is to revert to the sort of land use structures and credit expansion which enabled growth to average 13.5 per cent annually. Had that pace been maintained, the lag chalked up in development with various countries in South Asia would have been wide, but this is an Africawide situation which is just starting to be comprehended, that only open economies achieve, not closed economies awaiting ‘sufficient funding’ for ‘poverty reduction.’ It is this outmoded criticism that has been leveled at the current estimates, for instance in remarks elicited prior to the budget presentation, from the TGNP researcher. It can be said that the budget measures notwithstanding, there is still something tentative so far about how far Kilimo Kwanza changes attitudes in the country as a whole, and to that extent, even the degree to which credit passes into the sector could be limited. While this needs wider pursuit or research, it is apparent that finance that goes into opening up farms and starting to produce biofuels is project-related or needs of specific companies with own funds, and all they need is access to the land – helped out by local government officials. There isn’t as yet a rising tide of credit flow to agriculture, as in that context it isn’t the crop business that would be funded – as most local experts wish it was the case – but the land itself would have to be presented as collateral, whereas sentiments are still hard in that aspect. Even top political leaders go around telling Coast Region peasants “not to be deceived” and sell their land – though such an outlook would evidently hamper Kilimo Kwanza goals. Facts however are said to be stubborn, in which case the mere fact that there is a trickle of investors seeking land especially for large agro-fuel farming activity pushes up the price of land, and this facilitates local government having ‘sweeteners’ for peasants to abandon the land when an investor is found. So far there are clashes that
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Large scale commercial farmers in Tanzania have every reason to smile after Minister Mkulo’s removal of cess and other fiscal reviews
come up from one area to another in relation to such quest, partly on account of the fact that usually it is a matter of alienation of land in exchange for public goods like schools, water, road or even connection with electricity, while no actual price is given to individual peasants. Being allocated with another place to build doesn’t quite constitute an incentive to leave. When there is greater presence of in-
H
is face is always wearing a smile. He is hard a working individual; with his truck, he spends sleepless nights to deliver fertilizers and chemicals to farmers so they can have them on time. Farmers calls him “the savior”. He is a CNFA/TAGMARK trained Agrodealer, Msemwa Junior Agrovet. He began agribusiness in 2005 at a small town called Igomelo in Mbarari district, Mbeya with a starting capital of Tshs 75,000(USD 50) to-date his running capital inclusive of assets is around Tshs. 170ml.(USD 125,925 ) Good business is not only about how much I’ll be able to earn, is also about how much my customers who for me are farmers, will be satisfied from my products and services. My business is focused on the customers need and customers satisfaction,” he proudly adds. Msemwa has four agro shops, In Igwachanya village, 183 km from Mbeya town, Rujewa village, 128km from Mbeya, Ubaruku 19km from main road towards Iringa and Ruiwa 11km from the main road, serving more than 4,000 villagers. Most of his areas of focus have been on where farmers have an advantage of irrigation schemes. However business didn’t go as planned. Farmers were reluctant to buy improved seeds and fertilizers giving the rea-
vestors in agro-fuels and word goes around that the climate is favourable (title transfer sentiments and non-disturbance of companies already starting to farm) then there will be higher incentive for others to seek land. In that case the price incentive given to farmers would improve and fewer complaints would come about – and this is already largely the case when peasants sell
the land on their own, unlike when village governments ‘welcome’ an investor. In that case the wider plan for mapping out of land and issuing of titles would constitute a major boost for Kilimo Kwanza as it would permit a more rational transfer of land as an individual transaction, or reached by collective discussion from people holding titles and thus more empowered to determine the pricing than when a village acts presum-
ably on their behalf. That would accelerate the pace of title transfer, increase farming activities and farm sector jobs, push up effective demand for goods and services, and thus enable cuts in budgetary support for peasants. That sort of outlook is quite different – as a vision – from the predominant view espoused for instance by Prof. Mbilinyi where the focus of the budget should be ‘to raise
the living standards of people in one of the poorest countries on earth.’ To reach this goal, one of the tax instruments she espoused could help would be ‘the abolition of tax exemptions for large scale commercial enterprises, both foreign and locally owned.’ It is a policy thrust that sees issues in terms of redistribution rather than postulating dynamism for raising productivity, and then fails to see peasant attitudes and lack
An Agro-dealer who is succeeding in making a difference
son that the land was still fertile enough. Changing the mindset was a challenge as it has been in most parts of the country. But Msemwa did not sit down and complain. “What I did, was to hire a ‘bwana shamba’, organize farmers’ meetings in their villages and start teaching them the benefits of using improved seeds, chemicals and fertilizers. This created a great demand for my products” He explained. But then he realized that knowledge alone is not enough. He is dealing with small scale farmers who actually struggles to get their daily bread, but have the burning will to increase their yields and elevate their livelihood. So he woke up one day with an idea. He introduced a lending system to the farmers. With his truck and a loud speaker he drove across village streets announcing so loudly “If you don’t have money, you can still get anything you want and pay me back when you harvest” Last season alone Jan-April 2010 total of 900 rice farmers were supplied fertilizers on credit with an average of 3 bags @50kg per farmer. The results are staggering. Where farmers used to harvest 7bags per acre, they got up to 20bags per acre 3x more than what they used to.
Total value of fertilizers borrowed by villagers is worth Tshs 233ml.(US $ 172,600) “what I make them do, is to sign a
contract of which after harvest, there is a timeline where they can sell and transform their harvest to cash and immediately pay
me back. Others have offered rice with the same value of fertilizers taken for repayment, so I had to have a godown for storage.” The demand was above my capital, but thanks to CNFA/TAGMARK, I could get all the fertilizers and other inputs on demand from Tanzania Fertilizer Company (TFC) through the credit guarantee program by TAGMARK I need to make sure that, farmers who are disadvantaged, can still access improved fertilizers and increase their yields particularly women. And I think am succeeding” Villagers have organized groups of which they have their leaders and an organized system where they have rules and organized structure, they have meetings and can analyze authenticity of new members, place orders, receive products, and make payments. Msemwa, receives these orders and using his 2tonne truck, makes deliveries right to their villages 24/7 (around the clock). “Am not waiting for them to come to my shop, I follow them where they are” Other Agrodealers have been skeptical to do what I do, but the secret lies on collateral. In this case, the farm itself stays as the
of inclination to change what they are doing as a problem. Activists see poverty as a result of negative actions of the rich and thus equity lies in redistributing what there is towards the poor – only to achieve economic collapse in so doing, as the massive government borrowing this year to help with infrastructure after allocating one trillion shillings to agriculture positively indicates.
‘consigner’ why should we not make sure farmers are served? I challenge other Agrodealers to create demand by educating farmers on the use of inputs and create a system that they can be able to access these inputs…thereby, reach our green revolution” Msemwa also argues that Business Management Training he obtained from CNFA/TAGMARK makes him able not only to have his books in order, but also be creative to make his business grow, and yet empowering endtarget customers…wakulima. His future plan is to have enough stock of medium sized rice planters and harvesters that he can hire to farmers to ease and fasten the plantation process, harvest on a short time and get back to planting. His target here is on Mbarari farmers where most are on irrigation scheme and farming is not determined by seasonal rains. While in Igawa village he wants to introduce Power Tillers which can enable farmers the ability to till more land in a shortest possible time. Using a hand - hoe a farmer can spend 10dys doing an acre, Power Tiller can till the land and harrow 5acres per day, be used as a water pump, and as a carriage up to a tone of cargo. “I try to customize my business to meet the need of each customer. I believe in business creativity as I obtained from BMT…and that is my driving force” He concluded.
The Guardian KILIMO KWANZA
Tuesday 15 June, 2010
WHAT OTHERS DO
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Tanzania ends financial year with $35 million shot from World Bank
T
he World Bank’s Board of Executive Directors today approved an additional International Development Association (IDA) credit of US$35 million to Tanzania’s Agricultural Sector Development Program (ASDP), raising the total of Bank support to the Project to US$150 million. A release from the World Bank headquarters in Washington DC a week before the national budget said that the credit will be used to close the current financing gap in the District Irrigation Development Fund (DIDF) for rehabilitating and developing sustainable small-scale irrigation schemes identified and prepared within a district; including expanding groundwater irrigation in dry areas. Interestingly, the additional funding for agriculture came at about the same time as donors suspended the traditional budget support funds. In addition, the World Bank cash will support preparation for future medium and large scale irrigation investments, including pre-feasibility studies and designs, campaigns to promote cost-effective irrigation technologies and strengthening capacity of district, zonal and community levels on issues associated with irrigation development and management. “The supplemental funds to ASDP will help Tanzania deal with the impact of the global economic crisis and expand irrigation investments to raise agricultural productivity,” John Murray McIntire, the World Bank Country Director for Tanzania, Uganda, and Burundi was quoted. “We expect that the assistance provided under this additional finance will contribute substantially to agricultural growth and poverty reduction,” he added. According to he release, ASDP implementation experience thus far shows that for newly developed and rehabilitated/improved irrigation schemes average yields of paddy rose from 1.9 tons per hectare under traditional irrigation to 4.5 tons per hectare, and average gross income per hectare rose from Tsh 1.5 million to Tsh 3.6 million per year for paddy growers. Rain fed maize yields an average of 1.1 tons per hectare, but under irrigation farmers achieved an average of 4.1 tons per hectare. The production of high value crops in irrigated areas has significantly added to household incomes. “It is estimated that more than 11,000 households will benefit directly from investments undertaken with the new funds,” said Zainab Z. Semgalawe, the World Bank Task Team Leader for the project. “The rehabilitation and development of new irrigation schemes will improve household food security, reduce income poverty through increasing rural employment and fostering growth in the rural nonfarm economy,” she added. Though agriculture employs nearly 80 percent of the workforce, the large degree of
Women who are stuck in subsistence farming By Angel Navuri
World Bank President Robert Zoellick dependency on the sector renders the economy vulnerable to bad weather and to low crop prices. The multi-sectoral development strategy for agriculture aims to achieve more rapid growth through investment in irrigation,
more intensive land use and additional financing for value-added activities. This was the ninth (and last) operation to be approved by IDA for Tanzania during fiscal year 2009/2010, bringing total IDA approvals this fiscal year to US$ 908 mil-
lion. In total, the World Bank’s currently active country portfolio includes 25 operations with a net commitment of US$ 2,725.38 million. The largest share of resources is allocated to infrastructure (41 percent) fol-
lowed by human development including health, education and social protection (24 percent). In addition, Tanzania benefits from 11 regional projects, in which Tanzania-specific financing amounts to US$ 231.5 million.
Lack of market in the rural areas of Shinyanga, Mwanza and Bukoba is being aggravated by a one-crop culture which makes competition so stiff among the farmers that they can only sell their produce at ridiculously low prices. Monoculture overproduction also leads to wastage due to deterioration of produce and lack of transportation to distant markets. Driving from Dar es Salaam to Karagwe, you encounter many people growing just one type of crop in one area. A Karagwe peasant, Zofasta Peter whom l met drawing after walking for two hours to access it said, “We have been doing this for many years and now the government is talking about farming by irrigation yet there is no water even for drinking, we waitto see how it will be achieved.” She added many of her people plant sunflower which they end up selling at very low prices. Hamisi Salim from Singida who cultivates sweet potatoes said the market is a problem as they sell their products very cheaply. “It’s the same type of crop that’s why the price has to be low,” he said. He added that sometimes the farmers want to transport products to Dar es Salaam but fares are so that farmers cannot afford to. Salim added that if the government could help them access markets they would even produce more. Fatma Hassan who is a farmer in Shinyanga she said that lack of equipment and storage facilities have contributed to many people farming rice on only small pieces of land. “We have a lot of space here enough to cultivate all the hectors someone wants but as you can see we are unable to cultivate a wide range of crops. We cannot open large tracts of land without mechanisation.” In Bukoba there are areas where farmers grow only bananas. Mamelta Martin a farmer based in lgulwa village has 3 hectares all of which are under bananas and some coffee. Her daughter Marcensia Martin dropped out of school due to pregnancy and so became “a farmer” because she couldn’t continue with school any more. The parents gave her one hectare to cultivate bananas. The Karagwe District Commisioner Fabian Massawe said the area is ready to implement Kilimo Kwanza as the people in that area have no problems and can now go ahead to embrace commercial farming activities.
UNDP fights land degradation in Tanzania By Paul Mallimbo The UNDP Deputy Country Director, Ms Louise Chamberlain has said that, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) will continue to support the Government of Tanzania in combating land degradation threat in addition to climate change threats and its impacts. She said Agriculture which is still the dominant sector of Tanzania’s economy, specially in rural areas, has been shackled by productivity decline caused by both land degradation as we as poor water management. “We recognize that for a developing country like Tanzania, actions on Sustainable Land Managemnet (SLM) should be consistent with the country’s pri-
orities for poverty reduction and sustainable development as outlined in the MKUKUTA,” she added. Ms Louise Chamberlain said this during the closing of a five day workshop on Up scaling investments in Sustainable Land Management (SLM) in Tanzania , over the weekend. Ms Chamberlain said currently, land degradation is provisionally estimated to affect at least 40 percent of Tanzania ’s population. “You will all recall that the Fourth Phase Government prioritized overcoming Land Degradation at its outset by setting up an emergency programme to restore ecological productivity in key watersheds and wetlands – through MKAKATI (Strategy for Urgent Actions on Land Management and Water Catchments)” she added. However, the director said that,
Centrality of the agricultural sector to national development plan makes land degradation a very critical aspect, and sustainable land management a fundamental determinant of the long-term success of Tanzania ’s development strategy. She was also concerned that there is need to be strategic because currently there is reduction in donor aid in many countries because of difficult economic situation facing the world. Under such situation the donors are earning less and as result they give less. She warned that due to the current shaky global economy, Official Development Assistance (ODA) may be negatively affected, should this happen countries that are dependant on such assistance to finance its development, including Tanzania where current about 40 percent of the national budget comprise ODA will be
severely affected. Adding that, it is good that stakeholders talk about taking action to achieve Sustainable Land Management in the country and explore how the investments will be financed. This is where the Integrated Financing Strategy (IFS) developed by the Global Mechanism comes multipurpose. However, She added that, the investment plans that would result from this consultation should ensure longer term developments on Sustainable Land Management (SLM) especially responding to these events timely and in a coordinated manner. Ms Chamberlain urged the government to at least be able to mainstreams Sustainable Land Management mechanisms in planning, market/fiscal financial and implementations processes. She said such a situation should not af-
fect the country and instead, she urged the country’s leaders to be creative and explore various funding options which are in place. “We must think outside the box and come out with ideas that show us that a business as usual approach will not help us achieve our goal,” she advised. Speaking on Kilimo Kwanza efforts, Ms Chamberlain said that if the country wants to fight hunger, poverty and environmental degradation trends are to be reversed. It should be noted that keeping a proper balance between these two issues is quite a challenge. She said although the Government of Tanzania has developed good policies to address environmental issues including Environment Management Act (EMA2004), land degradation still remains number one environmental problem in
Tanzania. She cited some of the government measures as to fight these problems as MKUKUTA where it stresses the need for both vertical and horizontal integration and stronger cross sectoral collaboration. Ms Chamberlain also said that, this is where the need for consensus on a common vision for coordination becomes very important. It should be recognized that the need for active engagement with all partners in supporting and addressing SLM is essential in achieving countrie’s goals. This Workshop was organized by Vice President’s Office, Division of Environment, and attended by stakeholders from different Ministries, Local Government, representatives from Rome , Uganda, Ghana and Civil Society Organizations, with interest in Sustainable Land Management (SLM).