Enable 500 Tanzanian youth to feed their families

Better life is about better food, income, friendly and pleasant environments and love in the entire population. We all aware that, all the needs we are of; comes from our environmental resources and human knowledge, skills and collaboration. According to Worldmeter, 62% of world population lives in cities while 38% only lives in rural areas where food production is undertaking by 90% for the world population. It is believed that 75% of the world food is produced by smallholder farmers especially in rural areas.

Mboni ya Vijana Group has continued its roles in bring life to indigenous people in Kasulu rural by improving production ways for income, food and nature systems. We are local small organization working directly with local smallholder farmer community; however, we are proud for brining straight solutions against poverty which is the threat to lives and environments in Kasulu rural. This report explores the achievements Mboni ya Vijana has achieved in the past four months (July – October 2023);

Bringing water to in Kasulu rural community has continued through the four months and a total of five (5) sites have constructed with boreholes installed with rope hand pumps providing water to four school students and one village. The average population accessing and use clean water form those water wells is 3000 with potential improve of garden watering, drinking water, improved school attendance, and hygiene in families and school. Deus is the student at Shunguliba Secondary school, he used to go to school with the gallon of water for drinking and mopping however water was insufficient which made him stay at the school through a day without water for drinking. After the borehole finished and handled for use, he changed the way he felt being a student at Shunguliba. “I was feeling bad to be a secondary student. It was a complete punishment to me and my fellow student to walk over 2km with a gallon of water which was then not sufficient for my use through a day. Water at our school is unlocking our happiness, our studying mentality and our health and environments are getting better and better even through dry season” he stated. Water is playing a central role in bringing socio-economic development to the community following the access to clean water in short distance with low cost providing more time for other family food and income production, increased studying time to students, reduced water borne diseases and improving environments livability.

Improved farming remained our focus as the major source of food and income assurance for the families and through July to October 2023 we continued with farmers training using OSTRII production animated video, field visit and classroom sessions. The total number of 400 small farmers have identified and trained in sustainable farming which its practical farming implementation (crops planting) starts in October 2023. We have already prepared improved seeds especially clean cassava enough for 400 acres, sunflower enough for 140 acres and maize for 200 acres. Mboni ya Vijana has also continued with implementation of vegetables and fruits production to increase food and income security in Kasulu rural. There have been the harvest, supply and use of vegetables with an average weight of 21 tons in the past four months. These works have been undertaking in the dry season whereby production is done in accordance with available small-scale water and irrigation facilities. Suzana is a happy woman with her family because of improved food and nutrition to her family. Food and nutrition to her family is associated with the improved farming methods and income at family level. She affords family needs especially food health and education for her family. She narrates, “I am so happy because I am able to feed my family to the scale that I feel one of the parents who raise their families very well. In the last few year, my family was able to eat only once in a day but now we eat as we wish and not just a food but nutritious food, I pay schools fees, health expenses, buy good clothes for my children and we (family) are planning to start a new house in the next year. I am very pleased to learn and adapt better farming methods which are increasing my yield and income”. Suzan finishes. This story is only selected however, there are brilliant success case stories from families and community, telling about the impacts improved farming is causing for lives and environments.

Environments and climate change practices have been combined with the potential goal to serve our planet better for lives. Mboni ya Vijana involves the entire community to full participation in practical implementation of climate and environmental actions so the environments are livable and the future generations are at the edge of livelihoods prosperity. We have trained 54 community members in use of dried woods, weeds and crop residues how to make and us biochar for the purpose of capturing CO2 from the atmosphere and store it into the soil, improving the soil moistures and retaining soil eroded nutrients to deserve the environments. We collected more than 180kg of indigenous trees which are at disappearing risk and we are planting them. There have been planting and replacement of 6400 tree at Zeze primary school, Kakirungu Primary School, farmers and at MVG which all are good for our environments. We are delighted to share the story from Rojas from Rusesa who planted 620 trees with three species namely Entrandrophragna Exclsum, Markhamia Lutea and Syzgium cordartum. He didn’t know that these lost local or indigenous species could have grown at his farm. Here he says; “I want people to come and learn at my farm, it is a miracle, my farm is very impressing how these indigenous trees are growing well. I am proud of Mboni ya Vijana for teaching the benefit of trees and supply these trees to me for free. I want every one to learn and follow the lessons to make our environments better”. This imply that the community is adapting to new ways of life with nature that in the near future, will build a better society that care about the environments and contribute to climate change resilience.

Partnership, participation and engagements with development practitioners for collaboration and learning the national and international policies have been Mboni ya Vijana’s activities and achievement in the past four months. We are delighted to announce the partnership with Segal Family Foundation which will help us scale up our mission the partnership commenced on 1^st August 2023 and will keep alive to a grace period of one-year subject agreement to extension based on progress. Mboni ya Vijana attended and participated to Africa Food System Forum 2023 held early September in Dar Es Salaam Tanzania. We got time to learn and understand from National and international food system policies and programs which are potential opportunity for us to chip in. Also, we met, learn, talk and got potential opportunities to collaborate with individuals, organizations and companies who are in the same fields with us. Mboni ya Vijana visited and spoke to East Africa Community in Arusha Tanzania where we learned EAC’s priorities and potential opportunity for food system pipeline for the community. All these success are very potential for our credibility and popularity in Tanzania and beyond borders.

We are dedicated to developing our community, from empowering women and young people, training and educating people, and giving people loans to help lift them out of poverty.Since the start of this scheme in late 2015, it has reached and benefited over 3262 direct beneficiaries, like Adeline, below. These beneficiaries become ambassadors to the community about ways of generating income without causing adverse impacts on the environment.

The microfinance scheme also teaches women and youth about the businesses and environmental linkage. It encourages all the beneficiaries to plant trees and more sustainable environmental practices.

“Probably, I would have been a prostitute to manage my life but that has been contrary because I am with my own food business which gives me between 20,000 and 30,000TZS profit per day. This amount of profit I earn a day, I pay 7,000 TZS to my two women who help me through a day, 3,000 TZS a rent and I save 5,000TZS to my personal saving account and 4,000TZS to my two VICOBA groups (Village Saving Loan organization- VSLO) and the remaining amount I spend it for my family food. It is difficult to understand but this is an exceptional good lucky I have in my life. I managed to buy freezer which adds values to my business, bicycle which helps me with local movements and I feel respected by the family members” – Adeline narrated. She is one of MVG’s beneficiaries who got businesses training and later injection capital of 160,000 TZS and later qualified for 320,000TZS for small businesses at Zeze village in Kasulu. She has two children and her business is now at Kazuramimba neat to Zeze village.

Communities in Rural Tanzania are heavily dependent on farming through difficult era of adverse climate change which effects food production and community health. Mboni ya Vijana has introduced best crop varieties of sunflower, maize and cassava to increase yields compared to local varieties which are prone to diseases and pests threats. The best varieties are of many values such drought tolerance, able to overcome diseases and pests attack, huge yields and best economically. We have been demonstrating how best they are using demonstration farms and some farmer’s farms. Farmers are catching up with us with interesting feedback and inquiries as read below;

Benedicto Hosea is the scheme leader at Mboni ya Vijana Group, he is the farmers focal person at Zeze and neighbor villages also trained by Tanzania Official Seeds Certification Institute a seed producer. Here he says; “Many families are now aware the differences benefits between local and improved seeds varieties in terms of all the benefits (drought tolerance, yields quantity and strength against diseases and pests). I receive between 15 and 30 farmers wants my help either in verbal advice or access to quality seeds. They tell me, you have brought a light among families here, we were farming but we were very illiterates to improved farming. We need to involve in improved and sustainable farming but we will keep ask for further assistance. This is what you need to keep understanding us as we are transforming lives through this project. I feed good to see farmers change they ways of production but I am shy to see that they are many with a lot of demands those I cannot offer to them” – Benedicto says.

Japhet is a small farmer with the family of 5 other members and he is heavily depending on what farms give to him for his family. He says, “I have my choice of cassava variety which is TARI-CAS4. I chosen this variety because it is supper than the other varieties at our soil. It is ready to use just after 6 months since planting it, it give me 30 tons of yield per in one year and cannot give me loss due to droughts, diseases and pests. This is why I choose this type” – Japhet finished.

Havyala loves the lesson on improving soil from crop residues by changing them into biochar which is then added into soil to keep soil moisture and nutrients. It does also in storing carbon hence play a central role in climate change effect management. “Yes, it is good and affordable way of improving soil and yield. I never knew about the huge benefits crop residues can do to my farms and yields. I am happy I can collect and preserve crop residues for my next farming seasons by turning it into biochar. I can no longer burn crop residues for nothing but I will be doing it for benefits” – He finishes.

Leonard supported to farm and managed two acres of maize at Zeze village. Before the adoption to best farming practices, he harvested 6 bags of maize on two acres of land. This year he has served the two acres and here is his feedback; “Changes come every year in my life. I cannot imagine who I would have been to date with my four children and my wife if I was keeping traditional ways of farming. I have adapted Mboni ya Vijana procedures and I have been harvesting 56 to 62 bags of maize on two acres which I harvested not more than 6 bags of maize before adapting the new ways of farming. I honestly thank Mboni ya Vijana and the people who support it. It is exceptional blessings we got by having MVG here. I am honestly appreciating wonderful food and income revolution we are achieving here under the assistance from Mboni ya Vijana Group” – Leonard substantiates.

The increase in productivities and acceptance of farmers to adapt new ways of farming and economical requirements at Zeze village and other Kasulu rural communities, we therefore needed to get prepared for processing, manufacturing, storing and marketing the process so we manage the rate and forecasted post-harvest loss. This requires more investment in storage facilities, machineries for manufacturing and accessing the markets.

Thank you again for your support for our work. 

Benedicto