Plan Tanzania Annual Progress Report 2009

A YEAR IN

TANZAN09IA SUMMARY REPORT

UGANDA

Bukoba

Musoma

RWANDA

BURUNDI

Mwanza

Geita

Tabora Singida

Kigoma

Ugalla

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Sumbawanga

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Zanzibar

Dar es Salaam Dar Es Salaam Kisarawe

Ifakara

ZAMBIA

Songea

Lindi uma

• More than 50% of the population does not have access to clean, safe drinking water

Mtwara

• A quarter of Tanzanian girls do not attend primary school

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Lake Nyasa

COMOROS

• 12% of children die before they reach the age of five

TANZANIA

MOZAMBIQUE

Country Office Programme Unit

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Dodoma Morogoro Iringa Kibaha Mbeya

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DRC

GOOD REASONS why Plan works in Tanzania

KENYA

Lake Victoria

Our priorities in Tanzania

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Kafue

• Ensuring girls and boys have equal access to a good education

MALAWI

Tocantins

• Making sure families benefit from clean water, decent sanitation and a sustainable environment

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SOUTH AFRICA

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MADAGASCAR

• Protecting the rights of children, and helping them to take part in decision-making in their communities

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• Creating opportunities for families to develop their skills and incomes

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SWAZILAND

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LESOTHO

A small business started with Plan assistance.

Children make use of a new well.

Grande

TANZANIA FACTS Capital: Dodoma Population: 38 million Language: Swahili, English Climate: Tanzania has a tropical type of climate. In the highlands, temperatures range between 10˚C and 20˚C during cold and hot seasons respectively. The rest of the country has temperatures rarely falling lower than 20˚C.

The hottest period extends between November and February (25˚C - 31˚C) while the coldest period occurs between May and August (15˚C - 20˚C).

Economy: The economy is mostly based on agriculture, which accounts for more than half of the GDP, provides approximately 85% of exports, and employs approximately 80% of the

workforce. Topography and climatic conditions, however, limit cultivated crops to only 4% of the land area.

A YEAR IN

TANZANIA 09 SUMMARY REPORT

FOCUS ON: SUSTAINABLE FAMILY LIVELIHOODS Plan works with families across the poorest parts of Tanzania to help them develop the skills and knowledge they need to increase their incomes, improve their food supplies and protect their children from malnutrition.

We support training for farmers in animal husbandry, and in boosting their yields and marketing their produce. We assist villagers – particularly women – in setting up credit and savings groups, enabling them to save money and use loans for farming and business activities. We also promote vocational training for young people, giving them opportunities to learn trades and find work.

A BETTER FUTURE FOR FRANK

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Children receive birth certificates – a key to recognising their rights

The Bigger Picture

Plan is working with children, families and whole communities to address the problems that Tanzania faces. This report can only tell a small part of that story. As a further insight, last year we also: • Established 45 nursery centres in the regions of Geita and Kisarawe, promoting the education and wellbeing of very young children • Protected 14,906 children under five from malaria by supplying bed nets treated with insecticide • Improved sanitation and hygiene for families by promoting community-led sanitation projects in 47 villages.

Your support as a sponsor is crucial to achieving these positive results. So on behalf of the communities, partner organisations, and most of all the children we work with – thank you!

“The very poorest villagers who do not have the capital to use the services of a traditional bank can participate.

As the group’s savings grow, so they attract interest and the amount they can lend grows too” To learn more about Plan’s work in Tanzania visit plan.org.au/ourwork/southernafrica/tanzania

Produced for Tanzania by the Australian National Office.

hen Frank was deciding on the name for the savings and loans group he’d just set up in his village in eastern Tanzania, he knew exactly what to call it: Msichoke, or ‘don’t get tired’.

The name is particularly significant because Frank, his family and neighbours have every reason to be feeling worn down by life in the village of Muguruwe. In 2004, a particularly bad harvest left many without enough food. Already among the poorest in the country, families were left struggling to survive.

The consequences for children were devastating.

The rates of malnutrition soared to almost three times the national average. Children became weak and too ill to go to school.

In response, Plan’s number one priority became protecting families’ food supply and income.

Working together with local people, we aimed to help families make the best use of their resources to improve crop yields and find other ways of producing food.

We make sure any money they make works hard for them too, using an approach known as village savings and loans. This brings together villagers in a co-operative that pools savings and gives credit to individual members to help them fund improvements to their farms, or to set up small businesses.

Mutual support Frank was supported by Plan and our local partners to set up the Msichoke group, and others like it in his village. With training, the group have learned how to manage their savings and offer loans.

Typically, groups like Msichoke have up to 30 members and together save around 22,000 Tanzanian shillings (about £114) a week. This fund is then used by each group for lending, at an interest rate agreed by their members.

“With such income, I can now afford to buy enough food, and pay both health and education expenses for my children”

Anyone can join a group, provided they are prepared to save the minimum or meet the repayment terms if they are given a loan. This means the very poorest villagers who do not have the capital to use the services of a traditional bank can participate. As the group’s savings grow, so the amount they can lend grows too.

Every year, the money each saver has invested is returned, along with a proportion of the interest the funds have accrued.

Building prosperity Frank is a prime example of how such savings groups can very quickly help members build a more prosperous life. Before joining the group, he made between 50,000 and 100,000 shillings (£26 to £51) a year. In his first year in the group, he borrowed 21,000 shillings and invested it in his farm, and made a profit of 340,000 shillings.

This gave him the confidence to borrow 324,000 shillings to buy cows, goats and chickens. He sells the milk and eggs they produce and has made a profit of 3.3 million shillings (almost £2,000).

He has also used his savings to buy a small plot of land, and is now building his own house.

He explains: “With such income, I can now afford to buy enough food, and pay both health and education expenses for my children.”

With each investment Frank has made, his family’s finances have grown more secure and his children’s future is more certain.

He says: “I am able to pay school fees for two of my children who are enrolled in vocational training and my other two children who joined secondary school.”

Like the other members of the group, Plan’s support has enabled Frank to find other ways of producing food and making his ventures work for him. It’s a development he describes as “a dream come true for me and my family.”

Some names have been changed for child protection and privacy purposes.

plan.org.au