The Guardian Kilimo Kwanza issue number 51

Wednesday 20 February, 2013

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SUPPORTING THE PROMOTERS OF THE GREEN REVOLUTION

FARMINGAS BUSINESS

“ Reintroducing a lifetime opportunity for youths…Ruka JUU, a business challenge for youths, is back!Now, it’s all about youths on the farming business

By Pendo Mashulano, Femina

“AT the age of three, with just afew milk-teeth in my mouth, Iwas already a ‘farmer’”, saysGeoffrey Martin Sadana, a stu-dent at Nkasi Secondary Schoolin Rukwa.

“Before the break of dawn, mymother picked me from my bed and se-cured me on her back. Then, she tookher hoe, ready for yet another trip tothe farm, located a few kilometers awayfrom our home. I would sleep in bed,but on waking up I would find myselfon the farm!” “At the farm, I would playwith anything that I could find nearme, from soil to maize stalks. My moth-er would let me play as long as I didn’tget harmed. Using a stick or a sharpstone, I tilled the land and planted, like

I saw my parents do! In short, farmingwas my childhood game, my childhoodworld!” “When I was five, my parentsmade me a child-size hoe and I startedto help with farm tasks such as weed-ing, tilling onions and so on. As theyears went on, I got even better at do-ing work around the farm. When I wasseven, I could till up to 6 by 20 yards. Ilearned farming by doing. Each year Igot better and my parents increasedthe amount of land I farmed; that washow they taught me to work.”

“Farming became my life, I learnedthat it is the farm that gives us food, ed-ucation, clothing, it covers all the fami-ly needs. Today, even though I am insecondary school, I make it a point tojoin the rest of the family in farm on theweekends and even during the holi-days.”

Bahati has a story tooYes! The same Dada Bahati of

Fema TV Talk Show!She is as good onthe farm as she is on the TV screen, lis-ten to her story:

“When I was growing up, I remem-ber, our family farm was a distancefrom home. We woke up with the firstcock-crow, washed and quickly got ourhoes ready for farming with our par-ents.”

“Apart from the main family farm,we also had a big compound in-front ofour house and anyone who wantedspace to farm was allowed to do so.”

“I had my space where I cultivatedvegetables–spinach, chinese or cab-bage. These were used for family dish-es, but I was allowed to sell off someand use the money to buy anythingthat I wanted.”

“Because of this small business, Ihad my own pocket money most of thetime and I was able to buy myself fash-ionable clothes whenever I wanted. Myparents were so proud of me. Who saysfarming is hopeless?”

The same applies to me As I am talking to Geoffrey and

Bahati for stories for this article, I can’thelp, but think how similar their sto-ries are to mine. I, too, cannot tell ex-actly when I started to engage myself infarming. I just found myself in farmingwith the rest of the family. It was ourhome.

I was born in a big family and whenthe time for farming came only the sickand infants were excused! Even whenwe were attending different boardingschools - during holidays each one of uswould be assigned a piece of land to ei-ther till or weed and whoever finishedher share would list down her require-ments for school and get the money.

Farming was the name of thegame, nobody ever complained about it.We knew that all our needs – fromschool fees to food – came from thefarm. We knew that we were the man-power that our parents relied upon andthat nobody was going to farm for us.

I would work day and night to fin-ish my share, so I could have extra daysto visit my relatives before the schoolreopened. Life went on like that untilwe all finished school.

Today, we are all scattered around,working everywhere from offices to thefarm. Those who chose to stay on thefarm have their childhood experiencesto thank for helping them become thefarmers they are today.

Throw me in the farm and you willnot believe it is the same Mashulanoyou read in Fema! Thanks to my child-hood experience, I have an extra skillwhich I can use anytime I want.

How about you?Some students are already engaged

in farming, while others are not, right?Have you realised farming is the sourceof life - everything from school fees, mo-bile phone credit, clothes and food comefrom the farm!

Have you ever thought of farmingyour own piece of land? You can accessextra cash and contribute to your ownpocket money like Dada Bahati did!Have you thought of how much moneyyou can actually make from farming asmall plot of vegetables today?

Think about it. Be smart, the farmsmells of money! Remember, accessingfarming land and farming while inschool will give you and your family ex-tra cash. Use your evenings, weekendsand holidays for farming and let it beyour way of life.

Remember, food, books, cloths,school fees, even pocket money comesfrom the farm. Later in life you can in-vest more in farming and make it into aprofitable business. There is huge po-tential.

EDITORIALThe Guardian KILIMO KWANZA Wednesday 20 February, 2013

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The Guardian KILIMO KWANZAFARMING


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TANZANIA’S population is predominantly young.Preliminary results of the TanzaniaDemographic and Health Survey (TDHS) 2010indicate that close to half (47 per cent) of the pop-ulation is under the age of 15, the other half (49per cent) is aged 15 to 64, with the remaining 4

per cent being 65 or older. With only about half of the population in the economical-

ly productive age range of 15-64, a substantial burden isplaced on the productive people to support older and youngermembers. The agedependency ratio - an indicator of the eco-nomic responsibility of adults in their productive years, is107,indicating there are 107 dependants for every 100 persons inthe productive agegroup. This figure is higher than the figureof 104 per 100 found in the 1999 and 2004-05 TDHS andpoints to high fertility rates.

Tanzania also has a mixed economy with agriculture;comprising crop growing, animal husbandry, forestry, fisheryand hunting playing a key role in providing employment.Although at 42 per cent, the service industry is the major con-tributor to the gross domestic product (GDP) of the country.

Tanzania, like many developing countries, is an agrarianeconomy. Here residence has a close association with the typeof occupation, with majority of rural women and men engagedin agriculture, while urban dwellers are mostly found inskilled and unskilled occupations.

The agricultural sector however remains the main em-ployer, with 69 per cent of women and 62 per cent of men en-gaged in direct agricultural occupations. These figures arelower than those recorded in the 2004-05 TDHS, where 78 percent of women and 71 per cent of men were employed in agri-cultural occupations.

While these trends point to growing diversification of em-ployment opportunities, the exponential growth of the un-skilled labour sector indicates that most are abandoning agri-culture to work as unskilled labours in other sectors.

Wealth was also found to be more prevalent in urban ar-eas, with 64 per cent of the urban population falling in thehighest wealth quintile, contrasted against only 5 per cent inrural areas. Furthermore, 24 per cent of those in rural areasfall within the lowest wealth quintile.

When respondents in the TDHS 2010 were asked how of-ten they had problems in meeting the food needs of theirhouseholds in the 12 months before the survey, 41 per cent re-ported they never had a problem, 21 per cent said they oftenhad a problem, and 2 per cent reported always they had aproblem in meeting their food needs. Urban households werealso found to be far more likely than those in rural areas tohave three or more meals a day (78 per cent and 49 per centrespectively).

Meat consumption is also not common in Tanzania withmore than half of the households interviewed, (54 per cent)

reporting that they had consumed no meat in the previousweek, 19 per cent ate meat once, and 15 per cent ate it twice.Despite the fact that Tanzania has the third largest cattleherds in Africa, only 12 per cent of households had meat threeor more times in the week prior to the survey.

At current total fertility levels, the average Tanzanianwoman will have given birth to 5.4 children by the end of herlifetime. The TDHS 2010 also estimates that one-quarter ofTanzanian households are headed by women.

However, female headed households are also typicallypoorer than male-headed households.A woman’s nutritionalstatus has important implications for her health as well as forthe health of her children. Malnutrition in women results inreduced productivity, increased susceptibility to infections,slowed recovery from illness and a heightened risk of adversepregnancy outcome for both mothers and infants.

Good nutrition therefore is a prerequisite for the nation-al development of countries and for the wellbeing of individu-als.The TDHS 2010 measured three indicators of nutritionalstatus in children: height-for-age, weight-for-height, andweight-for-age.

At the national level, 42 per cent of children under-5years of age had low height-for-age or stunted; 5 per cent hadlow weight-for-height or wasted; and 16 per cent had lowweight-for-age, which reflects both chronic and acute undernutrition.

The TDHS 2010 preliminary results also suggest that theproblem of poor nutrition still affects the entire population,with women and children being especially vulnerable. Thenew WHO child growth standards for example, indicate thatthe levels of stunting, wasting in infancy and underweightduring the first half of infancy (0-6 months) is now higherthan it was measured before.

The writing is on the wall. Left unchecked, these trendspose a serious threat to the overall growth and developmentof the nation. It is against this background that we welcomeall efforts targeting youths to spur the growth, modernisationand development of agriculture in the country.

One such initiative is the Ruka Juu entrepreneurshipcompetition, which will highlight the success and challengesof youngsters approaching and undertaking farming as busi-ness. Read all about it in this issue of Kilimo Kwanza.

Wallace MauggoEditor

Farming as business:Not an empty slogan

i n s i d e

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Climate Change: Livestockrearing a cause?

Artwork & Design: KN Mayunga To have your organisation promoted in Kilimo Kwanza, Call: 0782 253 676, 0713 615 072

Strategic initiativeimproves food security

To farmers: Join forces,work together!

Why farming is life

“Remember, food,books, cloths, schoolfees, even pocketmoney comes fromthe farm

Send your commentsfor free startingwith LIFE to 15774

Horticulture: Great potential, opportunities in sight

Q. Briefly explain about strate-gic interventions, if any, for pro-duction techniques, standards,value addition and market accesson pineapples production.

A. Access to markets has been ahindering issue with horticulturalfarmers in most parts of the countrydue to poor infrastructure, logistics andaccess to finance. One of Taha’s objec-tives is strengthening the buyer-sellerlinkage.

One of the major milestones in thisprocess this year was to link KiwangwaPineapple Growers Association (Kipa)with counterparts from the Gulf region,who are willing to buy up to 5 contain-ers a week from these farmers.

Taha will continue mobilisingfarmers to ensure production technolo-gies are in place. The association willalso work to ensure sufficient volumes,varieties, and standards to sustain thismarket.

Q. Do you have strategicPartnerships for enhancing capac-ity in the horticultural sub-sector?

A. Taha is mandated to extend itsservices to reach out to horticulturalfarmers and other stakeholders nation-ally as well as pushing for focus on re-gional agricultural markets using vari-ous platforms.

The role of Taha is to enhance thecapacity of farmers so that they engageeffectively and efficiently in a win-winand sustainable relationships. Toachieve that, Taha has been engagedinto strategic partnerships with vari-ous national and international organi-sations to ensure that business supportservices are delivered to the industry.

It is with this regard that the asso-ciation joined hands with Kilimo Trust,to work together to realise food securi-ty and increased contribution of agri-culture to eradicate poverty, as well asincrease productivity and profitabilityof small and medium scale agriculturalenterprises.

Taha and Kilimo Trust signed aMoU to engage in joint efforts to ensureincreased horticultural productivityand integration of the Tanzania horti-cultural sub-sector into the region andglobal value chains.

We are doing this to take advan-tage of enormous opportunities for the

county to leverage existing compara-tive advantages in land and water re-sources to achieve supply response andmove towards becoming a net exporterof agricultural products.

Q. Brief us on the plan to es-tablish the horticulture practicaltraining centre of excellence(PTC)? Do you think it will materi-alise? How?

A. Taha signed a MoU with thegovernment through the Ministry ofAgriculture, Food Security andCooperatives in April 2012, where wewere allocated land to be used for es-tablishing a self-sustaining centre ofexcellence for horticultural practicaltrainings (PTC).

The PTC will be providing train-ings on different parts of horticulturalvalue chain as well as hands-on experi-ence on modern and good agriculturalpractices and other technical supportservices to farmers.

Currently, Taha provides trainingson good agricultural practices, farmingas a business, harvesting and post-har-vest techniques, amongst others.Therefore, Taha will not reinvent thewheel, but rather use the training cen-tre to consolidate the current trainingsand to have a practical “lab” for train-ing farmers on the entire value-chainprocess.

The PTC will be a sustainable enti-ty and will partner with appropriateprivate and governmental entitieswhile maintaining its commitment tohorticultural farmers. Taha has em-barked on a series of activities to jumpstart the implementation of this proj-ect.

The development of this facilitywill be on a phase approach.

The first phase will involve con-struction of buildings and practicalvegetable and vegetable seed plots, andthen practical field/plots for fruits willbe constructed during the secondphase, while the third phase will in-volve development of fields for cut flow-ers and ornamentals.

HORTICULTUREThe Guardian KILIMO KWANZA Wednesday 20 February, 2013

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The Guardian KILIMO KWANZAHORTICULTURE


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THE TanzaniaHorticulturalAssociation (Taha)executive directorJacqueline Mkindigranted Kilimo KwanzaSupplement aninterview. Variousissues, including plans,strategies andinvestmentopportunities in thesub-sector, werediscussed. Excerpts:

Q. What kinds of investmentopportunities exist in productionof horticulture? Can they meet in-creasing demands for markets?

A. Fruits and vegetables produc-tion for local and International mar-kets in Tanzania is very low comparedto available productive land resource.Market demand on high value vegeta-bles (green beans, peas, baby vegeta-bles, chilies) and fruits such as man-goes, avocados and pineapples hasbeen escalating.

To create enabling environment toattract investors to invest in horticul-ture, Taha has been working closelywith the government on a number of is-sues as well as mobilising small andmedium size farmers to produce andservice the market swelling demands.

With small holder farmers, Tahaplays a role of mobilising and buildingcapacities of these farmers and con-necting them with buyers or contrac-tors, providing trainings on standardscompliance, and offering infrastructur-al support.

Recently, Taha identified an in-vestor who is coming to invest in thevegetable export market with a plan tobuy up to 100tonnes of fresh vegetablesdaily to add into his current averageexport of an average of 50tonnes a day.

Although this investor is currentlyfocusing on the northern zone(Kilimanjaro, Arusha, Manyara andSingida), there are other potential in-vestors who are focusing on other re-gions.

Taha has embarked into conduct-ing series of campaigns to mobilisesmall and medium size growers to pro-duce for this market.

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ATTITUDEThe Guardian KILIMO KWANZA Wednesday 20 February, 2013

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The Guardian KILIMO KWANZATOGETHER


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By Gaure Mdee, Femina

“WHEN I was 17 my mom died,this was 6 years after my dadhad passed away, I had just fin-ished standard 7 and my sisterwas in standard 4, we had nosource of income and I wanted

to finish school no matter what. All wehad was a three-acre farm. I hadfarmed, but was not sure what to dowith the land or how to go about usingit,” explains farmer Frank Kalezi.

Frank is now 32, and has a wifeand three children. He has used farm-ing to put his sister, himself, and two ofhis children, through school, plus hemakes an additional profit!

“The challenges I faced then andthe ones I face now are the same, I sim-ply plan and tackle them differentlynow. I succeeded through persever-ance, luck and some help from exten-sion officers.”

For those of us who plan to get intofarming for profit someday, or are al-ready busy doing it, it would be wise tolisten in! Be prepared. Here are tipson how to handle some of the chal-lenges one might face while farming.

Negative attitudes Many people are discouraged by

the stigma associated with farming.This is a big challenge because too of-ten we hear people say, “Farming isdirty, messy and for the poor and illit-erate!”

Even on Bongo Star Search, asinging talent search competition,judges dismiss singing contestants bytelling them to go back to the farm, asif farming is something to be shamefulabout. These ideas could not be far-ther from the truth. There is nothingshameful about being a smart, savvy,money-making farmer!

Frank says, “This attitude ruinsfarming stands for in this country! Itmakes many young people turn theirback on farming as a business forthem, in the end they lose out.

An appropriate solution to thischallenge is promoting the under-standing and raising awareness thatfarming has value and could be a lu-crative industry because as long as hu-

mans eat, there is always a market forfarm products, especially food.

Any industry pays for those whoare ready to sacrifice and work hard,the same applies to farming. So, don’tbe afraid of a hoe because farming ismoney. Make it your business.

Lack of knowledge, skillsMany farmers lack the skills to lift

farming to the next level; they get sat-isfied as soon as they make a littlemoney. Frank sought the help of a car-ing extension officer, who taught himhow to farm profitably.

He sold eight bags of maize at firstthen bought an extra acre, “... after get-ting the extra acre, I was suddenlymaking more money and I made suremy sister could study.”

Two concrete suggestions could bea solution to this problem. First, everyvillage should have access to advisoryservice, that’s extension services intheir areas.

The experts have the knowledgeon the best crops to cultivate in a par-ticular area, what fertilisers, as well asherbicides and pesticides to apply on afarm. Their job is to help farmers, so,farmers have the right to that help.

Second, seek out farming groups inyour community who get together toshare advice and ideas about farming.As always, together the farmers arestronger.

Lack of farm inputsFertilisers and seeds are some-

times provided by the governmentthrough subsidy; however, often theyarrive late. This could be addressed bybuying or getting fertilisers on yourown. Frank never waits for subsidisedinputs; he simply goes and gets it onhis own.

Ask a farm group or extension offi-cer for help about the local environ-ment: find out the best time to plant soas to avoid insects, and how to makeown compost. “The crop will be strongenough to withstand attacks from thebugs if planted ahead of moist condi-tions,” Frank says.

In a farm group, members can tryto follow the inputs from the district orregional agent. If they are constantlyreminded, things may happen faster.

Lack of storage unitsStoring and processing crops is a

good way to increase the value; if youwait until there is a need for your prod-

uct in the market, you’ll get a betterprice. A solution to this challenge isputting crop sunders in the bedroom orsitting room. Frank used to do so. Hiswife didn’t like it, but eventually, hegot access to a warehouse.

Likewise, people in a farm commu-nity can find a place where they canstore their products or split the cost oftransporting crops to the closest ware-house. More traditional storing meth-ods such as vihenge serve as good stor-age.

Lack of marketsMarkets can be challenging to find,

far from farms or not always give whatone wants. Frank ensures that everytime he goes to the market, he alreadyhas people to sell to.

If the buyer does not satisfy hisasking price, he takes his corn to themillers, processes it and sells it out toother people as flour for a higher price.To address this challenge, a farmershould plan ahead, negotiate the priceand make an agreement with buyers

or middlemen beforehand.Again, the farmer must have a

back-up plan. If the buyer doesn’tagree on a good price, he or she shouldtake the crops somewhere else, or findanother way to market it.

Starting an association could bethe best solution too. This will helpfarmers to negotiate better prices as agroup.

Farming is a job with challengesjust like any other. Good money can beearned through it. To become success-ful, one should work hard to overcomethe challenges.

However, like anything else, farm-ing requires three P’s - patience, plan-ning and persistence to come out ontop. And this is a humble call for farm-ers: Be smart, get organised and con-duct your farming properly.“Starting an

association could bethe best solution too.This will help farmersto negotiate betterprices as a group

By Gaure Mdee, Femina

A tale about a snake

ONCE upon a time therelived a snake. It feastedon smaller creatures un-til he became too fat tofit in its hole. So, hesearched for another.

The snake came across a biganthill. It called the ants and said, “Iam the snake and I am very powerful.Leave this place, I want to live here.”

The ants said, “We have put somuch hard work in making our home.How can we leave it?” But the snake in-sisted that they leave.

The ants came up with a plan.They climbed on the body of the snake.Soon, all the ants were crawling allover its body. They started pricking thesnake. The snake could not bear thepain and ran for its life. The ants suc-ceeded at defeating the snake.

Together you are stronger Just like the ants, farmers who

unite gain in strength, and can over-come the hardest of challenging situa-tions.

When Mtibwa sugarcane farmersfelt the tax they were paying last yearwas unfair, the Mtibwa OutgrowersAssociation (Moa) took a stand and ap-proached the Agricultural Council ofTanzania (ACT) for help.

“We told the ACT that Kilomberofarmers were taxed less than we werefor the same amount of sugar cane loadand this was not fair. The ACT took theissue to government officials and thePrime Minister asked that taxes be ad-justed and that exemptions were madefor us,” explains Hadija Kondo,Chairman of the Moa.

The more the merrierComing together in clubs, associa-

tions and groups is generally beneficial.If you just can’t accept the idea, take it

from a Member of Parliament who canshare his experience.

Kigoma North MP, Zitto Kabwe,says that farm inputs came in late lastyear, so he made sure they made it ontime the next time around by givingsound advice to farmers in his con-stituency.

“I asked farmers to ouncilo, andouncilo well. There are no two waysabout it. You need to be a large ouncilorgroup. And just in case of problems, Itell them to involve journalists if theycan.”

And Zitto’s advice proved relevantin the following example: A group ofouncilor women farmers in Ijombe lastyear, found themselves in a tough spotafter they were told the land they werefarming on was no longer theirs.

“They (village leaders) rented ourland out to other people and pocketedthe money they got in the process. Wecalled on the help of the Legal andHuman Rights Centre in Mbeya. They

brought journalists who reported onthe issue embarrassing the leaders whoeventually gave us back the land,” ex-plains Salome Simon chairman ofIjombe Women Farmer group inMbeya.

“This could not have happenedwithout the strength and determina-tion of the ladies, and also a little helpfrom the ward ouncilor who made surehe met with the village leaders. Ademonstration of good leadership!Money taken from rent of the land wasreturned and directed towards the re-habilitation of some local schools,” ex-plains Said Mohamed, LHRC chair-man, Mbeya.

Benefits of groupsThe benefits include lower operat-

ing costs, as groups you can buy inputsin bulk. In most cases inputs are sold ata discount and you can share trans-portation costs. This means profit, besmart!

Another benefit is more bargainingpower. Price hikes from middlemen canbe eased if farmers work as one withone voice. As a group you can come upwith a set price that they will be forcedto accept. Use your power.

Collective action is another benefit.If you have a problem or feel you havebeen treated unfairly. Raise your con-cerns, join forces, and speak with onevoice. Together you can win!

Collective decision-making could beanother benefit. Being in a group willhelp you learn and gain better farmingskills. You will also make better deci-sions on issues that affect all farmers.Be efficient!

Another benefit is visibility. Localgovernment and private organisationswill notice you a lot easier and are al-ways more likely to help a group thanindividuals. Make your associationknown.

Also, there is actually less work todo when you work together.

There will be challenges tooPeople sometimes get greedy. Don’t

let it happen in your group. Don’t letanyone in the group take advantage orkeep control. Try keeping everythingopen and make sure people are ac-countable.Yes, someone might try torun off with the cash so, be careful inthe selection of group members, noteverybody is trustworthy, and be pa-tient; in fact be extremely patient withothers.

If possible, have a constitution orset of rules to lead your group thateveryone must follow and respect eachanother, otherwise, it won’t work!

To farmers: Join forces, work together!

Dig in, dig deep, it’s worth it!

“If you have a problemor feel you have beentreated unfairly. Raiseyour concerns, joinforces, and speak withone voice. Togetheryou can win!

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The Guardian KILIMO KWANZACOVER STORY


9COVER STORYThe Guardian KILIMO KWANZA Wednesday 20 February, 2013

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By Rebeca Gyumi, Femina

REMEMBER theFemina’s Ruka Juuentrepreneurshipcompetition on TV 2010that brought togethersix energetic andpassionate youngentrepreneurs tocompete for theopportunity of theirlifetime? Yes, the one inwhich Idrissa Mannah,a barber from Kibaha,won! Well, here is thegood news. The verysame competition isback, and now it’s allabout young farmers inbusiness…

Ruka JUU in a nutshell

RUKA JUU is Femina’sown reality based TV en-trepreneurship competi-tion, an offshoot of FemaTV Talk show. It pre-miered season one in ear-

ly 2011, leaving a huge impression withthe viewers.

In a quest to reach youths and dis-cuss pressing issues in an entertainingway, Femina, a youths’ family healthplanning non-profit organisation,brings you Ruka JUU the second sea-son, whose theme is “farming as busi-ness.”

Farming is ‘hot!’Femina has visited smart young

entrepreneurs across the country usingfarming to build their lives. Smartfarming is the key, like one guy ex-plained to Femina reporter “the earthsmells of money, but people just don’tsee it”. Everyone wants a job and in-come, but employment opportunitiescan be difficult to find.

While jobs in other industries maybe limited, agriculture is still the sectorin Tanzania which has the most prom-ise for youths. Yes, it’s true there arehidden opportunities in farming thatFemina wants to help youths discover.

Femina strongly believes farming

can turn one’s life around. The RukaJuu TV competition is back, this time aradio show, Fema Radio, to go with it.So, viewers are encouraged to turn on,tune in, and keep themselves updated.

The Ruka Juu teamsABC: The charming Amabilis alias

ABC, will be hosting the TV show.Many viewers loved her in Season I,they are going to do so again. This time

she’ll be in full farm gear! She willguide the youth and others through inrealising that farming is fun.

Bwana Ishi: Viewers and listnersare definitely dying to see what Bwana

Ishi is doing on the farm. Yes, the fun-ny Bwana Ishi is going to be farming;it’s going to be so much fun. He will findsecrets and challenges, just wait andsee.

Farming as business: Reintro ducing a lifetime opportunity

Dada Bahati: The contestants andother followers of the programme havea chance to win something. There willbe judges in every TV episode, butthose following the programme athome can vote as well. Their votesmatters.

Rebeca: She presented in theFema Talk Show alongside ABC. Now,she will be heard on the radio whereshe’ll be one of the lead presentersalong with a new member of the team,on the Fema radio programme.

Michael Baruti: Viewers may re-call his smooth, dark voice from hiswork as a radio presenter for the EastAfrica Radio. Now, they should watchout for him, he will be mixing in ‘Fema’style.

In addition, viewers will meetmany young farmers across Tanzania,farm experts and other people who liveand love the bounty of the land. So,watch out, this is going to blow every-one’s mind!

Why focus on farming? Well… • Farming is life. Food nourishes

us, it fuels us! With food wegrow, we satisfy our cravings,

we cure ourselves. We arewhat we eat!

• Farming is wealth. Everyonehas to eat to survive, so no oth-er job is more fundamentalthan farming. The market forfood is therefore unlimited,there is money to earn. Farmthe right way, farming thesmart way!

• Plenty of fertile land. Ourcountry is blessed with landthat is ripe with opportunitiesin agricultural development.Smart farmers who knowwhat kinds of crops to growcan turn this land into money.

• Farming is our backbone. Didyou know that 85 per cent ofTanzanians live off the land?This country depends on ourfarmers. It is time that we allpay attention to agricultureand make it more profitable.

• Kilimo Bomba. Call it kilimobomba or kilimo kwanza, likethe government campaign,let’s all join hands in makingfarming a priority, lets feedour future, let’s build our lives!

Scouting was fun, educational‘Tembeauone is a Swahili saying

meaning that when you walk aroundyou will learn a lot. That is what hap-pened to the whole production teamwhen they were out scouting for thesettings and the contestants for theRuka Juu Season II.

They travelled to three regions;Arusha, Morogoro and Rukwa, search-ing for the smart and skilled youngfarmers in Monduli, Karatu, Kilosa,Mvomero, Sumbawanga and Nkasi.

Imagine the Ruka Juu Season II

team moving from the rough roads ofRukwa to the red dust in Karatu. Theymet dozens of young farmers, (aged 18-30) making a life for themselves andtheir loved ones through farming.

Most of them were eager to partic-ipate in the TV competition and radioshow and share their experiences. Theteam found a selected group of 6 farm-ers to participate in the TV competi-tion and we will meet many more onthe radio.

Get with the new season During the TV competition, all

contestants will put their agriculturalskills and entrepreneurial know-howto test as they face practical chal-lenges.

The contestants, who are currentlycultivating different staple crops for in-come, will be faced with mind bogglingtests, all farm related. And they willshow us what reality is like on thefarm when you have to come up withsolutions and tackle reality.

The filming is done in the contes-tant’s home areas, in order to chal-lenge them within their normal farm-ing environment. Viewers will get tomeet their families and friends, judgetheir performance and participate inchoosing the winner.

On top of that, viewers will remainwith a refreshing view of farming.Follow the programme this comingseason. Farming is getting burning hotand smells like money. The show willstart airing in March. Don’t miss out!“The filming is done in the contestant’s home

areas, in order to challenge them within theirnormal farming environment. Viewers will getto meet their families and friends, judge theirperformance and participate in choosing thewinner

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The Guardian KILIMO KWANZAWednesday 20 February, 2013

11VECOThe Guardian KILIMO KWANZA Wednesday 20 February, 2013

10

By Special Correspondent,Ansaf

IMPROVED and market-basedproduction has potential im-pact on increasing incomes forlarge number of smallholderchicken keepers in rural com-munities. This has been proved

by the impacts of one of Veco’s pro-gramme interventions in Same dis-trict, Kilimanjaro region.

In 2007, Veco Tanzania supporteda five-year programme on food securityin Simanjiro and Same districts withthe aim of making agriculture a viableundertaking and beneficial to under-privileged communities.

The programme was reviewed in2008 to match Veco’s change in ap-proach towards enhancing food securi-ty for family farmers. A new approachof Sustainable Agriculture ChainDevelopment (SACD) was adopted bythe programme, and hence it was re-

named as Social and EconomicEmpowerment Programme forSimanjiro and Same Districts (Seep forSiSa).

The SACD approach views the de-velopment of a commodity in a muchmore holistic way; all direct and indi-

rect actors that are engaged in activi-ties within the commodity chain arebeneficiaries of the programme inter-vention.

The previous approach of sustain-able agriculture for food security wasconsidered too narrow. It only looked

at the family farmers’ welfare result-ing in leaving some crucial issues andbottlenecks unresolved.

Seep for SiSa adopted the SACDapproach from July 2008 onwards andin order to achieve its goals, Veco inSame district supported the develop-

ment of chicken value chain. How it worksThe programme supported organ-

ised family farmer groups in fourwards of Kihurio, Makanya, Maoreand Same. This was a three-yearstrategic plan to support OrganizedFamily Farmers (OFFs) to improvetheir livelihood.

Veco, through its implementingpartner (Same District Council), facili-tated the organisation and strengthen-ing of farmer groups, which enhancedeasy delivery of extension services,training, experiential learning and re-duction of transaction costs throughgroup action.

The training provided include bet-ter animal husbandry, particularlychicken production and management,marketing, record keeping, businessskills management, group formationand strengthening.

The training enabled farmers tocommercialise and improve the qualityand quantity of indigenous chicken. Italso improved entrepreneurial skillsand empowerment in chicken business.

The entrepreneurship amongchicken keepers became a new skilland a way of life for them. Farmerswere not just given training for chickenproduction and selling, but much moreon how best they can keep their enter-prises alive.

Farmers have been using theseskills to improve the wellbeing of theirfamilies and society in general, andthey continue to invest and expandtheir enterprises. Chicken keeping isnow a market–driven undertaking.

The entrepreneurs focus on theever changing preference of the buyers.One day to two months old chicks areon higher demand than eggs. As a re-sponse to this demand for chicks,smallholder farmers are now investingin the hatchery project which appearsto be more profitable.

Long-term impactsThe long-term impact of supporting

the organised family farmer groups inmoving along the value chain beyondeconomic gains is that a significantpart of the poor population is alleviatedfrom poverty. Some success stories in-clude the commercial chicken farmingproject that has transformed peoples’lives.

Danstan Kihedu is a farmer livingwith his wife and three children inMpirani village in Maore ward, Samedistrict. He has been keeping chicken

just as a hobby since 1998. As he said,“I was keeping chicken just in case Ineeded some eggs and meat for myfamily.

“I used to keep not more than fivechicken at a time. I did not know thatindigenous chickens can impact on mylife economically. Suddenly, the chick-en project changed my life completely.Thanks to the programme interven-tion.”

Kihedu joined Muungano group inearly 2008. Through the group and theVeco programme intervention in Maoreward, he transformed his chicken keep-ing from subsistence to commercialproduction.

This was after receiving some tech-nical training on commercial chickenfarming from Same District Council.He said that, commercial farming hasbroadened his knowledge and skills.

Kihedu’s income increased and be-came a peer educator. He eventuallyturned into a supplier of chicks in hisown village and the neighbouring vil-lages outside of Maore ward.

The main market for his chicks isSame, Hedaru and Makanya. He cansupply up to 400 chicks in a singletransaction. He vaccinates the chicksbefore selling them and his customers

have trusted his supplies.“I also givethem some advice on how to take careof them,” he added.

The business has transformed hislife. He has constructed two houses andwas able to pay school fees for his chil-dren. Kihedu says: “Kuku nimali”meaning chicken is wealth.

Through entrepreneurship skillstraining and commercial chicken pro-

duction, Danstan Kihedu has broad-ened knowledge and skills which trans-formed him from subsistence to com-mercial farmer.

Also, Shogholo is a farmer livingwith his family in Same ward in Same.He started keeping chicken in late 2008after joining his Umoja group. He wasmotivated after seeing some foundermembers of the same group benefitingfrom the training and other Veco pro-gramme intervention provided to thegroup.

Initially, he was not engaged inchicken keeping, so he was new to theproject. After attending training andexposure visits, he started keepingabout 10 chicken. Slowly the project ex-panded as more chicks were produceddue to improved management and care.He now owns up to 300 chicken at a go.

He sells eggs, live chicken andsome chicks. He can get up to 350,000/-per month as income from the busi-ness. From the income obtained hemanages to settle family needs such asfood and school fees.

Shogholo has also constructed afamily house. He plans to expand hisbusiness by having categories of chick-en, from a day old chicks to parentstock layers. Among the benefits he ob-

tained from the programme interven-tion that he will never forget, is thetechnical training and skills on com-mercial chicken production.

He said through various trainingand exposure, he has gained a lot ofknowledge and skills with which hethinks they are more than money. Hecommented: “The gained knowledgeand skills are the seeds towards eco-nomic and social success.”

Shogholo is standing near his newbuilding (three bedrooms with akitchen) under construction. This con-struction is financed through the in-come obtained from commercial indige-nous chicken project.

A similar experienceMagreth Mashambo is a farmer liv-

ing in Same district with her five chil-dren, two girls and three boys. Shestarted keeping chicken after being mo-tivated by the programme interventionin 2008. Initially, she kept chicken as asource of eggs and some meat for herfamily.

Later, commercial indigenouschicken turned to be the main source ofincome to support the single moth-er;“We have been leaving on the busi-ness. The kids obtain all their school re-quirements from the business. Thebusiness has employed me.”

Mashambo is among the foundermembers of organised family farmergroup called Muungano. The group wasestablished in 2008 through the facili-tation of the Veco programme imple-menting partner, Same DistrictCouncil. The group has thirty mem-bers, 25 females and five males.

Through various technical trainingon commercial chicken production,Mashambo managed to establish thechicken project. She started with 50chicken. Then the Seep for SiSa sup-ported her with improved modernchicken shelter, whereby she had tocontribute building blocks, water andlabour while Veco contributed cement,iron sheets and timber for the building.

Construction of the shelter en-hanced expansion of the production.She could increase the number of chick-en up to 150 including some cocks. Thecocks are kept for three to four monthsbefore they are sold at 8,000/- each. Shecan keep up to 15 cocks at a time.

Through small loans from hergroup’s Village Community Bank, shemanaged to run the business smoothly.She also established a small hatcherywhereby she produces 50 chicks everymonth.

“I also sell eggs. I can get up to fourtrays of eggs per month. Each tray issold at 7,500/- hence I get 30,000/- fromeggs while the chicks, especially theone-day old chicks are sold at 1000/-each. I get a minimum of 50,000/- fromchicks business.” She says on averageshe can earn up to 150,000/- per month.

“Two children are in secondaryschool, a boy and a girl. The boy is inform three while the girl is form one.This business has assisted a lot as I’ma single mother since my husband leftme and the children. The children de-pend entirely on me,” she adds.

Mashambo’s husband went toMorogoro to look for employment in2007 and he never came back. Despiteher marital status, Mashambo wasable to send her two children to second-ary school. She also renovated herhouse.

Strategic initiative improves

food security,changes lives

Continues page 11

From page 10 Strategic initiative improvesfood security, changes lives

“There is simply noclear information onwhat needs to bedone at these check-points. As a result,exporters face delays,fail to meet supplycommitments andincur losses

VECO

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The Guardian KILIMO KWANZAPROMO


13COASTALThe Guardian KILIMO KWANZA Wednesday 20 February, 2013

12


IT has been a habit or a joke forvery long time for people fromthe up country of Tanzania toconsider people from thecoastal areas as lazy, don’twant to work, they are always

interested in traditional dancing(mdundiko), and playing a traditionalgame known as bao. Some people callthem mamwinyi, implying “the lazyones.”

This generalisation might be truein some of the cases as it is in all otherpeople from other areas of Tanzania.Some are hard workers while othersare not. People are saying this is dueto the fact that the area was dominat-ed by the Arabs during the colonialera,who had capital and were not en-gaged in any hard activities than earn-ing from capital investment.

Therefore, this might historicallyexplain why most coastal people don’twant to engage in hard activities, in-stead they just want activities whichare simple and can be done at leisure.

When Veco Tanzania programmestarted the implementation of its six-year programme in 2008 in Mkurangadistrict, Coast region, the peoples’ atti-tude towards work was exactly charac-terised by laziness.

It was very difficult for farmers toengage themselves in commercial pro-duction of cassava. They used to sayfarming is cumbersome and it is an im-possible undertaking in their areas be-cause they were poor – they don’t havecapital to invest in the commercialfarming activities.

The Veco interventionHowever, when Veco Tanzania

launched its programme in Mkuranga,the situation started changing slowly.Using its Sustainable AgricultureChain Development (SACD) approach,this Belgian non-governmental organi-sation with the mission of improvingthe livelihood of organised familyfarmers in rural areas, started by or-ganising a multi-stakeholder platformto discuss issues related to the cassavachain.

The stakeholders reviewed thefindings of a cassava chain analysis

study. Challenges and opportunitieswere examined, and potential actorswere discussed with the view to mak-ing better use of existing opportunitiesalong the cassava value chain.

As a result, tailor-made interven-tions were designed and carried out toovercome the identified challenges.These interventions included trainingfarmers on recommended agronomicpractices of cassava in order to im-prove productivity per unit area.

The content of the training onagronomic practices ranged from landpreparation, planting, selection ofplanting materials, deep tillage, weed-ing to harvesting. Then training onprocessing of cassava flour, prepara-tion of different cassava products suchas bites, entrepreneurship and variousstudy visits to successful farmers wereconducted.

Adults learn better by doing.Action-learning allowed adults to un-derstand and appreciate what wastaught theoretically. Also the pro-gramme sensitised the farmers to in-vest in processing facilities as part ofcapacity building.

Motivation for farmersThe major motivation for farmers

to invest in recommended agronomicpractices and processing facilities wasthe increased profit margin comparedto what they have been earning by sell-ing fresh cassava.

Kizapala village is one of the vil-lages where Veco Tanzania supports

the implementation of a six-year cas-sava programme with two phases(three years each – from 2008 to 2013).The village is located at Mkamba wardin Mkuranga district. There are fourgroups with 44 members. The groupsthat are involved in cassava chainhave joined together to form a villageCommercial Family FarmersOrganisation (CFFO) in 2009.

The CFFO was formed after themembers had realised that individualgroups cannot meet the market de-mands in terms of quantity and quali-ty. The main function of the CFFO is toorganise collective initiatives such ascollective processing, bulking, market-ing and fund mobilisation while thefunction of the four groups is to mo-bilise and support the production ofcassava in individual farms.

These groups support agronomictraining through Farmer Field Schoolsand demonstration plots, supply ofplanting materials and monitoring theperformance of farms owned by mem-bers.

In order to reach the objective ofcollective initiative, the KizapalaCFFO started mobilising resources forthe construction of a processing, bulk-ing and marketing centre.

Resource mobilisationEach member contributed 80,000/-

to support the construction of the cen-tre, including the purchase of a two-acre piece of land.

Each member participated in the

construction of the centre by collectingsands, gravel, fetching water, raisingwalls and assisting technicians duringconstruction. The contributions (eitherin cash or in kind) may be over250,000/- per member.

During one of the sensitisationmeetings, one member of the CFFOthanked Veco for awakening them.”We are going to show people that notall coastal people are lazy. If well sen-sitised and shown the benefits of in-vestment, they are always ready tocommit their resources towards an in-tervention.” The building has fiverooms, which will serve as a processingroom, a store, meeting room and twooffices.

After seeing their efforts on theconstruction of the centre, VecoTanzania decided to support the or-ganisation to purchase iron sheets, ce-ment, windows and doors to completethe centre. To process cassava oneneeds to have the machinery. TheCFFO mobilised resources to purchasea chipping machine worth 950,000/-and a milling machine worth1,650,000/-.

The dependency syndromeIn some places where Veco is im-

plementing the programme, othergroups expected Veco to buy the equip-ment for them. But for Kizapala farm-ers, that is a “dependency syndrome.”

The group secretary JumaNyamgunda said, “After being trainedon entrepreneurship we realised that

what we are doing right now is a busi-ness and if we want to know whetherwe are making profit or loss we neededto factor in our expenses.” He said,“This helps us to know the cost ofpreparing the products.

The CFFO treasurer Fauzia Ufunesaid, “We have decided to commit ourown resources because we want to cre-ate a sense of ownership among themembers.” She said, if members don’tcontribute, they will tend to considerthe investments not theirs.

“It has been a habit that when in-vestment is fully donated, members ofthe group do not hold leaders account-able for misuse of the investments.”

Kizapala CFFO has now startedrealising the benefits of the invest-ment. The CFFO now process cassavainto chips, starch and flour. Individualmembers also make different cassavabites such as spaghetti, cakes, pan-cakes, donuts, “maandazi” and veg-etable from cassava leaves. All theseactivities take place at the group’s pro-cessing centre. Cassava vegetablefrom this group is sold at 2,000/- perkilogram and cassava flour is sold atbetween 800/- and 1,000/- per kilogramfor unpackaged. When packed into im-proved packaging materials, the priceof flour increases to between 1,000/-and 1,200/- per kilogram.

The group has orders of cassavaproducts which they supply weekly inDar es Salaam markets, Mkurangatown and within the village schools.VECO assisted the development of thepackaging materials as starter kitwhich will then be purchased by theCFFO. The packaging materials wouldhelp the CFFOs to penetrate more lu-crative markets such as supermarketsin big cities.

The success story Their success story attracted more

chain supporters. The BelgianTechnical Cooperation (BTC) decidedto support the drilling of a borehole tosolve the problem of water shortage forcassava processing. This borehole isnow at the final stages of its making,and it will be used by the CFFO in pro-cessing cassava.

Two extensions will be installed tosupply water to other village commu-nities. However, people will be chargedfor the service and the CFFO will usethe money for maintenance of the bore-hole. Another member of the CFFORajabu Nyamgunda said, “We are veryproud for what we have done becausewe have started earning income andwe are food secured. We are known byso many people because we receive na-tional and international visitors. Manypeople want to work with us.

“The business created employmentto us and so many farmers wants tojoin our CFFO after realising that weare far ahead of them. Despite the suc-cesses, Nyamgunda says, the groupstill has shortages of drying facilitiesespecially during rainy seasons. “Wedepend much on direct sun drying.”

The success of Kizapala communi-ty negates the wrong perception thatcoastal people are lazy. Success of anyinitiative “depends much on the sensi-tization techniques used by facilitatorsin disseminating the concept andwhether the intended intervention hastangible benefits,” concludesNyamgunda.

Reforms: Newera unfolds forcoastal people

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areas, including economic develop-ment, food security and biological di-versity.”

The Aripo’s Draft LegalFramework is another attempt to foistUPOV 91 on 14 African countries, in-cluding Tanzania. The legal frame-work does not make any attempt to de-velop a regime that is suitable to theneeds of the region. It’s about protect-ing the private sector on the pretextthat this is in the interest of small-scale farmers.

The legal framework, if adoptedwill bind Tanzania to UPOV 91 andany national legislation developed willhave to work within these parameters.

Shift of agro-industrialisationTogether, these three legislative

changes pave the way for a shift to theindustrialisation of agriculture, whileenabling the big corporations to satisfytheir shareholders, but take little ac-count of the needs of the millions ofsmall farmers who rely on farmer seedsystems for their livelihoods.

Interestingly, the African Union(AU) has provided a Model Law onthese issues, which provides a safetynet for small farmers, and recognisestheir key role in the maintenance ofbiodiversity, and the breeding and de-velopment of locally appropriate seedvarieties.

The drafters of the new legislationhave ignored AU advice and seem to belistening only to the industry advo-cates. The AU Model Law limits intel-lectual property over indigenousknowledge and prohibits the patentingof life forms and biological processes. Italso protects farmers’ rights to save,use, exchange and sell farm-savedseed.

Proposals for a fair playSo, here are a few proposals to help

level the playing field including, tearup the draft Plant Breeders RightsBill, and replace it with one based onthe African Union Model Law – whichbalances the need to protect seed com-panies with the need to protect farm-ers’ rights.

Delay joining UPOV 1991 untilTanzanian agriculture has developedto a position where the nation can ben-efit from the UPOV provisions; andstart listening to the voices of theworld’s independent scientists, the UNand the AU, who are advocatingagainst industrial agriculture and infavour of ecological agriculture.

It is also recommended to wise upto the fact that this legislation is driv-en by global agribusiness corporationsand speculative investors who are pur-suing the hottest investment opportu-nity the world currently has to offer:African agriculture.

Lastly but not least, involveTanzanian farmer groups fully in thedevelopment of legislation to ensure itmeets the real needs of the farmingcommunity, the people who are actual-ly feeding the nation.

The Guardian KILIMO KWANZASEEDS


15SEEDSThe Guardian KILIMO KWANZA Wednesday 20 February, 2013

14


THE government haspassed a law that forbidsfarmers from selecting,saving, and sharing quali-ty seeds with their fami-lies, friends and neigh-

bours; it has been learnt. The changeswere made recently in legislative sys-tem regarding Intellectual PropertyRights over seed and plant varieties.

While this is usually a boring busi-ness best left to the lawyers, it becomescrucial when 70 per cent of the popula-tion depend on agriculture for theirlivelihoods.

The changes include the new PlantBreeders Rights Bill 2012, signing upto an International Treaty on PlantVarieties (UPOV 1991), and the adop-tion of a binding legal frameworkthrough membership of the AfricanRegional Intellectual PropertyOrganisation (Aripo).

All three proposed changes willstrengthen the hand of the multina-tional corporations who control theworld’s seed sales, and further disad-vantage small farmers who rely onsaved seeds for their food security.

The government is strongly sup-porting private sector involvement inagricultural modernisation, on a large-scale high-input industrial model asthe context of agriculture in the coun-try is changing.

The international business commu-nity is increasingly engaging and in-vesting in Tanzanian agriculture. Thisis bringing new ways of working andnew pressures, as multinational seedcompanies seek to secure intellectualproperty rights to existing and newplant varieties to generate profitsthrough sales of seeds, pesticides andfertilisers.

Neo ‘green revolution’ agendaProponents of this ‘green revolu-

tion’ agenda have not stopped at agri-cultural practices, but have commis-sioned expert studies of how legislationin African countries can be changed tospeed up the introduction of the newagricultural model. They have identi-fied the regional trading blocs and in-ternational treaties as entry points.

African countries are busy organis-ing into groupings. EAC, SADC, andComesa are fertile grounds for plantingthe seeds of regional policies and legis-lation that support the interests of themultinational corporations.

Agricultural investors are queuingup to introduce Tanzania to large-scaleplantations of high input crops for ex-port as biofuels and animal feed. Themodel for this type of agriculture isAmerica’s Mid-West, where huge farmsof a single crop are run by a few staffusing gigantic machines, and where 98per cent of farmers buy their seedsevery year from the big seed compa-nies. They do not save their seed fornext year, as they used to in times goneby.

Instead, farmers are monitored bythe so-called ‘seed police’, agents of thebig seed companies whose job is to in-vestigate farmers and bring to justice

anyone caught saving patented seed.Here in Africa, more than 80 per

cent of all seed sare produced and dis-tributed informally, from farmer tofarmer. Small farmers in East Africasave 60-70 per cent of seeds used on-farm, acquire 30-40 per cent of theirseeds from relatives and neighbours,with less than 10 per cent obtainedfrom the formal sector, for example,from agro-dealers.

The reality is that small farmersare by far the largest and most prolificgroup of seed breeders in Africa andthey have successfully cultivated anabundant diversity of crops for cen-turies.

Farmer-to-farmer seed systemThis farmer-to-farmer seed system

limits the cost of production by preserv-ing independence from the commercialseed sector, while the exchange of seedsensures the free flow of genetic re-sources, contributing to the develop-ment of locally appropriate seeds and tocrop diversity. We need to support thedevelopment of such systems, whichare important sources for both modernand traditional varieties.

There is widespread recognition ofthe importance of smallholder farmermanaged seed systems and the key roleof women in maintaining them. On-farm seed conservation is recognised inglobal treaties such as theInternational Treaty on Plant GeneticResources (ITPGRFA) as well as theConvention on Biological Diversity(CBD).

Tanzania is signatory to both ofthese, but fails to recognise the contri-bution of farmers and their rights to ashare of the benefits in the new wave ofsigned legislation.

The Plant Breeders Rights Bill2012 has been passed into Tanzanianlaw. It will be used to strengthen therights of the commercial seed sectorwhile marginalising the farmer com-munity, risking a major impact on thelivelihoods and food security ofTanzanian small farmers.

The Bill grants rights to sell seedsto those who develop new varieties.Crucially, it only allows farmers “to usethe product of harvest (obtained byplanting on his own holding) for propa-gating purposes on his own holding”.This effectively means that farmers canno longer save, exchange and sell seedsfrom the protected varieties.

For example, in this new GreenRevolution model, an internationalseed company sends scientists toTanzania to develop an improved seedvariety. They take a local, hardy exist-ing seed variety and improve it by crossbreeding to achieve a hybrid variety, orby inserting a new gene to give it re-sistance to a certain herbicide.

Then they register the new varietyunder the new Bill and gain the soleright to sell that seed for the next 25-30years. If a farmer wants to use the newseeds she has to buy them from theseed company. If she plants them, sheis not allowed to keep the harvestedseed for anything other than her ownuse.

She cannot give or exchange somewith her neighbour to try out, and she

cannot sell them to anyone. Also theoffspring of hybrid seeds lose their par-ents’ advantages, so the seeds becomeworthless.

Buying seeds year-on-yearNow, the farmer is forced to buy

seeds year-on-year from the agro deal-er, who encourages them to add fer-tiliser and pesticide to their shoppinglist. And no recognition is given to therole of the farmers in developing the ex-isting variety. Gradually the stock ofinformal seeds is run down and soonthe only seeds available are the expen-sive store-bought ones.

The alternative sustainable sce-nario is that farmers work with localextension staff and agricultural re-search institutes to test, select andmultiply the best seeds, register theseeds with Tanzania Official SeedCertification Institute (TOSCI), andthen are able to exchange and sell theseeds to farmers in neighbouring vil-lages, who know that these seeds arehigh quality, and will be successful inthe local conditions.

Prices are kept very low, and localfarmers (male and female) retain con-trol of their seed and food sovereignty,while maintaining the rich agriculturalbiodiversity which Tanzania is cele-brated for (Tanzania is the world’s 11thmost bio-diverse country).

The intellectual property rights re-main in the public domain. This ap-proach is already working in some ar-eas of Tanzania, and until now hasbeen encouraged by government underthe Quality Declared Seed system. Ifthe seeds are patented under the newPBR Bill, this practice will be outlawed.

The world’s seed giantsAccording to the non-profit ETC

Group, the world's six largest agro-chemical manufacturers, who controlnearly 75 per cent of the global pesti-cide market, are also seed industry gi-ants.

Monsanto, the world's biggest seedcompany is the world's fifth largestagrochemical company. Syngenta, theworld's second largest agrochemicalcompany is also the world's thirdlargest seed company.

Bayer, the world's biggest agro-chemical company is also the world'sseventh biggest seed company. AndDuPont, the world's second biggestseed company is also the world's sixthlargest agrochemical company.These

companies are struggling to exporttheir way out of a global recession, andare fully backed by their governments,who need the export revenues to bal-ance their national deficits.

Other beneficiaries are the world’sinvestors in hedge funds who are bet-ting on the rise of global food prices, theincreased demand for meat (hence ani-mal feed) by the rapidly growing mid-dle classes in the world’s emergingeconomies, and the switch from fossilfuels to biofuels. These billion dollar in-vestment funds are busy funding large-scale agricultural projects whereverland is cheap – and it doesn’t get muchcheaper than in Tanzania.

The United Nations SpecialRapporteur on the Right to Food,Olivier de Schutter, warns that: “theprofessionalisation of breeding and itsseparation from farming leads to theemergence of a commercial seed sys-tem, alongside the farmers’ seed sys-tems through which farmers tradition-ally save, exchange and sell seeds, of-ten informally.”

Monopoly privilegesThis shift has led to grant tempo-

rary monopoly privileges to plantbreeders and patent-holders throughthe tools of intellectual property, as ameans to encourage research and inno-vation in plant breeding. In thisprocess, however, the poorest farmersmay become increasingly dependent onexpensive inputs, creating the risk ofindebtedness in the face of unstable in-comes.

Private-led research may seek tosatisfy the needs of farmers in industri-alized countries, while neglecting thoseof poor farmers in developing countries.The farmers’ seed systems may be putin jeopardy, although most farmers indeveloping countries still rely on suchsystems, which, for them, are a sourceof economic independence and re-silience in the face of threats such aspests, diseases or climate change.

Finally, agrobiodiversity may bethreatened by the uniformisation en-couraged by the spread of commercialvarieties. Farmers, including womenfarmers, need stronger rights, and aseat at the decision making table –agreed?

Why has Tanzania signed up?Now, it’s important to know why

Tanzania has signed up to an interna-tional treaty (UPOV 1991) that pro-tects the interests of multinationalagribusiness corporations, while weak-ening farmers’ rights.

Recently, Tanzania joined theInternational Union for the Protectionof New Varieties of Plants (UPOV1991). It is now the second country inSub-Saharan Africa to do so, afterSouth Africa.

Many independent agencies havevoiced warnings about joining UPOV.Grain, an international non-profit or-ganisation that works to support smallfarmers and social movements in theirstruggles for community-controlled andbiodiversity-based food systems, hasthis to say:

“UPOV denies farmers' rights bothin the narrow and the wide sense. In

the narrow sense, the right to freelysave seed from the harvest is curtailed.In the wide sense, UPOV does notrecognise or support communities' in-herent rights to biodiversity and theirspace to innovate.

“Northern companies will take overnational breeding systems in theSouth. National breeders and local seedcompanies will be bought out by theforeign companies. Northern compa-nies will get ownership of the South'sbiodiversity with no obligation to sharethe benefits.

“UPOV does not provide for anysharing of benefits from the North's ex-ploitation of the South's biodiversity.Farmers of the South end up payingroyalties for their own germ plasm,which has been tampered with andrepackaged in the North.

“UPOV criteria for protection willexacerbate erosion of biodiversity.Uniformity leads to harvest loss andfurther food insecurity. Joining UPOVmeans, becoming part to a system thatsupport the rights of industrial breed-ers over those of farmers.

“UPOV is designed to facilitate mo-nopolies in corporate plant breeding.Despite 35 years of Green Revolutionand UPOV, the South is still food inse-cure. Joining a biased system likeUPOV will ensure that the South's in-tegration into Northern-controlledmarkets increases, but not for the ben-efit of those who are hungry today.”

Graham Dutfield, Professor ofInternational Governance at LeedsUniversity School of Law, states,“Critics contend that the UPOV systemis unsuited to the agricultural charac-teristics of developing countries.”

But that UPOV is suited for andpromotes an industrial-style, monocul-ture-based farming system and favorsthe commercial seed industry (includ-ing by furthering agricultural systemsthat require chemical inputs) oversmall farmers, diversity and tradition-al knowledge.

Concentration of seed industryMany point to the increasing con-

centration in the seed industry that hasoccurred over the last two decades, say-ing that this concentration, as well asintellectual property protection forseeds, is inconsistent with humanrights.

Critics add that yield improve-ments since UPOV came into force owemore to scientific developments thanintellectual property protection, andthat this has occurred simultaneouslywith a massive loss of biological diver-sity.

UPOV detractors add that the sys-tem does not recognize the incrementalcontribution of farmers over priordecades to developing new crops, northat crop development and improve-ment has happened since farming be-gan, even in the absence of intellectualproperty protection.

Dutfield cautions, “It appears thata number of developing countries joinUPOV due to political and economicpressures, with insufficient considera-tion of whether UPOV membershipwould contribute long-term to the coun-try’s policy objectives in a range of key“UPOV criteria for

protection willexacerbate erosion ofbiodiversity.Uniformity leads toharvest loss andfurther food insecurity

Setback as farmers forbidden to save, share quality seeds

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COLUMNThe Guardian KILIMO KWANZA Wednesday 20 February, 2013

16

THERE are multiple globaldangers facing the liveli-hood of this earth. Expertshave highlighted six majorthreats, as the most press-ing ones, of our time,

namely: climate change, water short-age, food scarcity, ocean collapse, defor-estation, and biodiversity loss.

Although each of these threats ontheir own might cause reckless dam-age, their occurrence all at the sametime would probably result in a widescale global collapse resulting in exten-sive loss of life throughout the planet.

Today, let’s talk about numbers.Numbers can be very fascinating attimes, but not always will they leave asmile on your face and this will be oneof those moments. Climate change is agrowing concern in today’s world and

efforts to counter it should be steppedup and more focus placed on combatingit.

Did you know that one of the pri-mary causes of climate change is live-stock rearing? About 51 per cent of hu-man caused greenhouse gas emissionsare accounted for by livestock and theirbyproducts.

The animal husbandry industry isthe largest source of methane and ni-trous oxide which are 300 times morepotent than carbon dioxide.

Livestock rearing is also a cause offood crisis, and here is where it gets in-teresting. Nearly half of the world’sgrain supply is used to breed and fattenlivestock. This is at a cost to about 11million children worldwide in countriesproducing these grains; ironically diefrom hunger each year.

Scientists argue that reduction oflivestock so that these grains can be de-livered to people meeting the needs of agrowing population thus averting foodcrisis.

There are many contributing fac-tors behind this food crisis, which is al-ready a tragic reality in poorer coun-tries and a looming threat for wealthi-er ones. One of the scandals of our glob-al food system is that nearly 1 billionpeople suffer from hunger and malnu-trition.

The world uses close to 67 billionanimals a year for meat, milk and eggs.Animal husbandry is responsible for 18per cent of global greenhouse gas emis-sions which contribute to dangerous cli-mate change. Over 30 per cent of glob-al grains including wheat and maizeand 90 per cent of soya are used to feedfarm animals.

To produce one kilo of edible beefmeat, ten kilos of animal feed are used,five kilos of grain to produce a kilogramof edible pork and about three kilos ofgrain to produce one kilo of edible poul-try. Now, the average age of a well bredcow is about 300 kilos, this would re-quire 3,000 kilos of animal feed to pro-duce it.

If a livestock farmer had let’s say100 heads of livestock, that wouldamount to 300,000 kilos of animal feedmade form grains. Then again, askyourself how many children would thisfeed if it was given to them directly see-ing as after the cow has been slaugh-tered the meat becomes expensive to

purchase for most people.Directly supplied grain could feed

the entire population of the earth easi-ly. Another easy solution to help reme-dy this situation is simply for popula-tions in high meat-eating regions todrastically cut down on their intake ofmeat and milk overall, and to chooseanimal products only from higher wel-fare systems which have paid more re-gard to environmental protection andanimal welfare.

A June 2010 report by the UnitedNations Environmental Program andthe European Commission concludedthat a substantial reduction of environ-mental impacts would only be possiblewith a substantial worldwide change ofdiet, away from all animal products.

Everybody should make it a priori-ty among themselves to do their part incombating climate change and globalwarming. If this is not harnessed fastthe risk of losing everything is great.Priority should not be only for econom-ic or political reputation of individualnations or we might lose all life on ourplanet; humans, animals, plants, treesetc.

“As human beings, we are vulnera-ble to confusing the unprecedentedwith the improbable. In our everydayexperience, if something has never hap-pened before, we are generally safe inassuming it is not going to happen inthe future, but the exceptions can killyou and climate change is one of thoseexceptions,” says US climate changecampaigner, Al Gore.

KILIMOKWANZADIRECTORY

WATER AND SANITATION

Dar es Salaam Water and Sewerage Authority(DAWASA) – Tel: +255 22 276 0006

Dar es Salaam Water and Sewarage Corporation(DAWASCO) Tel: +255 22-2131191/4

Drilling and Dam Construction Agency (DDCA)Tel: +255 22 2410430/2410299

Energy and Water Utilities Regulatory Authority Tel: +255 22 2123850, 22 2123853

Water and Environmental Sanitation ProjectsMaintenance Organization (WEPMO)Tel: +255 22 2410738, 716 099959

Ministry of WaterTel: +255 22 245 1448

INDUSTRY SUPPORT ANDASSOCIATIONS

Small Industries Development Organization(SIDO) – Email: [email protected], [email protected]

ANSAF - P.O. Box 6370, Dar es Salaam

CNFA - [email protected]

Tractors LimitedCells: +255 784 421606, 786 150213

Consolidated Holdings Corporation (CHC)Tel: 255 (022) 2117988/9

Vocational Education and Training Authority(VETA) – Tel: +255 22 2863683/2863409

Export Processing Zones in Tanzania (EPZ)Tel: +255 22 2451827-9

Agricultural Economics Society of Tanzania(AGREST) – Tel. +255-23 260 3415

Tanzania National Business Council (TNBC)Tel: +255 22 2122984-6

Tanzania Agriculture Partnership (TAP)Tel: +255 22 2124851

Tanzania Milk Processors Association (TAMPA)Tel: +255 222 450 426

Rural Livelihood Development Company (RLDC)Tel: +255 26 2321455

Tanzania Cotton BoardTel: +255 22 2122564, 2128347

Horticultural Development Council of Tanzania (HODECT)Cell: +255 789 222 344; Fax: +255 27254 4568

TATEECO Ltd – Tel: +255 784 427817

AGRO-PROCESSING

ERTH Food - Tel: +255 22 2862040

MUKPAR Tanzania Ltd Tel: +255 28 250038/184

ASAS Diaries Limited - Tel: +255 26 2725200

Tanga Fresh – Tel +255 27 2644238

NatureRipe Kilimanjaro LimitedTel: +255 22 21 51457

EQUIPMENT

Gurudumu Tatu LimitedTel: +255 22 2865632 / 2863699

National Service Corporation Sole (SUMAJKT)Cell: +255 717 993 874, 715 787 887

FINANCE

Private Agricultural Sector Support (PASS)Tel: 023-3752/3758/3765

Community Bank AssociationTel: +255 22 2123245

Bank of TanzaniaP.O. Box 2939, Dar es Slaam, Tanzania

AGRO-INPUTS

Minjingu Mines & Fertilizers LtdTel: +255 27 253 9259 250 4679

Climate Change: Livestockrearing a cause?

www.best-ac.org www.ansaf.or.tz

This sideof Africa

By Nicolas

Begisen

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Documents

The Guardian Kilimo Kwanza issue number 51