Enhancing Climate-Smart Agriculture for Restoring Ecosystem

To address challenges in environmental, social, and economic dimensions across productive landscapes, CSA practices and technologies for coordinating the priorities of multiple community and other stakeholders in order to achieve more efficient, effective, and equitable food systems while conserving the nature. For the Tanzanian context, CSA will be agriculture that will sustainably increase productivity and income, ability to adopt and build community resilience to climate change and enhances food and nutrition security while string to achieving mitigation co-benefit in line with national economic development priorities. While the concept is new and still evolving, many of the practices and technologies that make up CSA already exist worldwide and are currently used by farmers to cope with various production risks. More than 8000 community members in two villages (Kamagambo and Ahamulama) in Karagwe District in Kagera Region will directly and indirectly benefit with the solution.

Currently the farmers are suffering from low yields in terms of livestock keeping and agriculture production. We hope that the solution will equip community with viable solution hence high yields but also conserving the environment.

To train the community to understand the concept of Climate-Smart Agriculture and its application in rural context. We shall create Farmers Business Groups (FBGs) of 20-30 farmers each group.  We will have approximately 10-15 groups of which we will be able to train and monitor their  progress during and after the project implementation. All these groups and the individuals included therein will be facilitated and trained over the concept and application of it altogether. Most of rural communities have not been able to access the knowledge of CSA. Thus, the training on the concept will be able to change their mindsets and involve on the the anticipated benefits. These communities will act as the benchmark for other communities to learn and cascade the concepts in their communities as well. 

The solution intends to serve the communities of two villages in Karagwe Districts. We shall have at least 200-300 trained from the two villages (Kamagambo and Ahamulama). The two villages have population of about 8,000 people with about 3000 households. The two villages were very much affected by refugees from Rwanda in 1995-2000. The intervention intended will restore the situation and improve their livelihoods. 

The solution will enhance new technologies  to the farmers in those two villages on CSA. The trained personnel will act as a hub to continue cascading the knowledge to entire villages. The neighbouring villages will have an opportunity to learn and cascade the knowledge furthermore. CSA will enable them to farm sustainably and equip them with knowledge on climate change and adaptations/coping mechanism. 

We have a diversified team with CSA professionalisms. We have three personnel with MSc in Natural Resources and Management, we have two PhD holders in Agriculture and Climate change, we have two personnel with MBA in Agronomy, we have financial managers who hold degrees in accounts and finance. Briefly we have a qualified team with diverse experience on ground. We are quite sure that we will be able to deliver and achieve the best solution in the communities.

We have about 175 who directly being served through training and close follow up. We have about 3000 indirect beneficiaries who acquire services through social media.

We are applying solve so that to get financial and technical support to solve challenges that face our communities but also ednhancing our communities to live better life.

The community has been not improving in terms agriculture yields and environmental conservation, and it has continuously been destructing the environment. The communities have been doing all thses due to the lack of knowledge and the use of CSA. Now, this solution will be innovative in such way that it will change their perception on farming practices  but also on how to incorporate the concept of CSA. Capacity building in terms of  training and proper application of the concept will change their general perception and hence change on their livelihoods and ecosystem. We expect the lives of the people to change and the environment and ecosystems in the two villages. Furthermore, this will act as a hub for other communities and stakeholders in this endeavor to learn and apply the same innovations in their respective areas. It in this form, that we will be planting a 'seed' of change in the communities. The seed will grow and hence produce the desired fruits. 

Our organization will continue to monitor and evaluate the impacts of the solution and share the same to other stakeholders for continuous improvement.

Our organization vision is to have communities that are morale, technologically, economically, socially, and environmentally developed in all walks of life and  our is to attain the development of the Tanzanian community that is attributed by equal access of education on technology, economy, social, ethics/cultural behaviours and environmental conservation through collaborating with the government and other stakeholders.

With the proposed solution, we anticipate to have community which is highly engaged and involved in climate-smart agriculture and attain all necessary parameters for for focal changes in their mind sets, environmental management and sustainable ecosystem.

This project will create value chain by generate income to farmers, agricultural knowledge through training on how to
cultivate without using industrial fertilizers and using the manures to enhance natural soil fertility and ecosystem restoration.
This project furthermore will contribute to:
1. Poverty alleviation in rural areas of Tanzania where CSA will be taking place. This is in line with Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) number one and number two (No poverty and zero hunger).
2. The project will encourage gender inclusion and enhance gender equality through various training on how to escape from gender imbalances in the society. This would be in line with SDG number 5 and number 10 (Gender equality and Reduced inequalities)
3. The project will create decent work and economic growth as it will be involving various stakeholders (farmers, government officials, project workers, trading personnel, transporters etc). There will be money circulation within area of influence and in Tanzania as a whole. This is in line with SGD number 8 (Decent work and economic growth)
4. The project will encourage the farmers to farm sustainably and remain environmentally responsible using all environmental upkeep methods. This would be in line SDG number 13 (Climate action).

Agriculture if conceptually looked at a business level will contribute highly to economic gains both at individual and at community levels. Most people living in rural areas have limited marketing of the agricultural raw products. This has caused a more shift of people from rural to urban centres to seek the means of getting their livelihoods. This has always been a problem in major towns and cities here in Tanzania whereby crimes and any other related challenges have been the cases.

On the other hands, farmers particularly small holders’ farmers are not well informed in terms of training and awareness on modern agriculture, market trends and availability and accessibility of agriculture crop species.  Now, this project intends to undertake trainings on the identified gaps to all project staff and farmers business groups. The training output would be: Agriculture and agribusiness knowledge transmitted to all involved parties including the government personnel and other stakeholders (agriculture, environment, and social livelihoods sectors). The project is intending to add values to the grains during the process so as to have quality products for consumptions to all age sets in Tanzania.

 The project is anticipated to bring more changes in terms of wealth and health, climate change and coping mechanisms, contributing to ecosystem restoration in rural areas  of the Tanzania to start with; but also contributing greatly to the Sustainable Development Goals as we will emphasize on the preparation and use of manure to enhance soil natural fertility. Furthermore, under this project, all engaged farmers will be given training and awareness on the important of conserving the environment and coping mechanisms for climate change and more importantly, the communities will be capacitated on the general concept of climate-smart agriculture

The project intends to equate both business enhancements (commercialization) and community civilization in terms of wealthy and environmental sustainability. People likely to benefit from the projects include youth and women, business vendors, government- agricultural entities.

The project is a cyclic kind of model: Farmers will produce the farms raw materials, then the raw materials will be transported to the factories/manufacturing/processing zones, the raw materials will be added values under various specifications from nutritious specialities/experts. The product will be returned to the consumers. The advantage of the product is that is friendly and enhances good health to all user age groups.

The sustainability of the project remains clear that people will remain using the product as it pertains to their health but also enhances the farmers who have been considered to be poor class here in Tanzania, their income will remain increasing, hence enhancing their wealth and enhancement of CSA. The farmers in turn will also be using the product to enhance their health. Therefore, the project will remain cyclic in its nature, hence sustainable development of the project and all projects’ beneficiaries. The sustainability model  would include main three pillars (Farmers, Factories and consumers). Transporters will act as auxiliaries to enhance the business mobility. Business Management will remain at the centre to make sure that business plans, innovations, research are constantly implemented.

It is the objective to have a diversified team that is inclusive to gender balance. Furthermore, our organization will highly work with youth and women who will be put at the center of our solutions. These two groups have been marginalized in rural areas. Our organization is committed to bring change. The organization Management has a total of 6 people of whom 3 are female. Our goal remains valid that we will highly involve youth  which working class to bring change in terms of poverty alleviation and management of climate change and adaptation/mitigation.

We would reach the farmers on the sites to assess their farming methodologies. The agricultural extensionists will be engaged to participate in this operational model.  The farmers will undergo various training so that to know the farming mechanisms including quality harvesting, drying and packing. They would also be trained on environmental upkeep/conservation and climate change coping mechanisms. Furthermore, they will be trained on financial literate and bookkeeping. This will be inline of providing them with financial/business sustainability so that they can come out from poverty but also keeping them with good health.

Afterwards, the farm raw materials will be transported to the manufacturing sites to add value to the product. After adhering to all requirements, then the product would be transported to the consumers with the stipulated guidance and guidelines.

The farmers will will be facilitated with markets of where they will be selling their products. However, we shall continue to engage various stakeholders in this endeavors to make sure the project remains vibrant and sustainable. Furthermore, we will continue to engage the government to provide a conducive environment and subsidies to these communities. 

This has not been achieved.