Tanzania
Changing Lives through the local church.
Overview
For decades, the people of central Tanzania have faced challenges with hunger and food insecurity due to lack of rainfall and ineffective farming methods. As the majority of families rely on agriculture for their source of income, many of them live in extreme poverty. Many families survive on less than one dollar per day. Through Tearfund and local churches in Tanzania, you can help farming families grow more food to eat and sell so that they can generate more income and start their climb out of extreme poverty.
Quick Facts
Our Projects
In partnership with the Canadian Foodgrains Bank and the Diocese of Central Tanganyika (DCT), through Tearfund you can help address the hunger crisis by providing training in conservation agriculture and savings groups to thousands of farmers and their families in 7 villages in Dodoma Region.
Scaling Up Conservation Agriculture
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Problem
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Challenges
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Activities
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Details
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Outcome
Problem
Widespread hunger due to low crop output and extreme poverty. 49% of household eat only 1 meal a day, and 46% of households eat two meals a day. There is massive food shortages 6 months of the year between harvests.
Challenges
Farmers lack access to quality farming inputs such as seeds. Dry weather conditions make it hard to ensure crops are able to grow to their full potential. Additionally, families do not have any access to formal financial instructions nor is there sufficient economic infrastructure in the region to facilitate commercial activity.
Activities
In partnership with the local church, this program is training farmers in conservation agriculture techniques to preserve soil moisture and fertility and increase crop yield. Inputs such as seeds and tools are also being provided to farmers as needed. Additionally, savings and loan groups are being established to provide families with the ability to take out loans to start new income generating activities such as buying more land or starting new businesses.
Project Details
- Location: Dodoma Region
- Timeframe: 2015 – 2020
- Total Budget: $924,576
Outcome
Over 3,907 families (approximately 23,442 individuals) will have better access to nutritious food year round to eat and to sell for income. Local churches who are facilitating the work will continue to influence and be lights in their communities. Communities will begin to thrive.
Stories of Transformation
A new family
As a young girl, Pendo’s stepmother never allowed her to attend school past grade 5, and she was married off to a man twice her age. Fleeing from her abusive marriage. With no where to go, she worked as a housemaid. But the pay barely covered the bus fare to and from work. Alone, Pendo felt trapped. Until that is she discovered a new family in her savings group.
Rediscovering the "lost crop"
Esther and Nelson struggled to feed their 5 children in the dry Dodoma region of Tanzania. They thought it was impossible to grow enough. But after they joined a farmer’s field school they learned about a crop that had long been forgotten. The lablab-bean. It thrived. Now Esther and Nelson are making sure that all there neighbours re-discover this wonderful crop.
Power for the Children
A recent father, William wanted to find a way to provide a better life for his wife and newborn son. With the help of a Savings Group, William was able to invest in a new innovation that made him the talk of the town. Read how William’s lucrative business is taking off below!
