IMPROVED NUTRION THROUGH PROMOTION OF UPLAND RICE FARMING IN MULEBA, MISENYI AND KYATO DISTRICTS -TANZANIA
The introduction and promotion of mechanized upland rice farming in the country can be taken as a step to lessen the problem of monoculture as well as an alternative to wetland conservation to paddy rice cultivation. The informal preliminary survey conducted by MULEBA ASSOCIATION OF WOMEN LIVING WITH HIV/AIDS documented that, upland rice farming would be one of the way towards diversifying source of income earning base, combating transitory food insecurity and protection of wetlands.
About You
Section 1: About You
First Name
Richard
Last Name
Bataringaya
Website
Organization
MULEBA ASSOCIATION OF WOMEN LIVING WITH HIV/AIDS
Country
Tanzania
Section 2: About Your Organization
Organization Name
MULEBA ASSOCIATION OF WOMEN LIVING WITH HIV/AIDS
Organization Website
Organization Phone
+255755266031
Organization Address
P.O.BOX 2441 MWANZA –TANZANIA
Is your organization a
Non‐profit/NGO/citizen sector organization
Organization Country
Tanzania
Your idea
Name Your Project
IMPROVED NUTRION THROUGH PROMOTION OF UPLAND RICE FARMING IN MULEBA, MISENYI AND KYATO DISTRICTS -TANZANIA
Country your work focuses on
Tanzania
Describe Your Idea
The introduction and promotion of mechanized upland rice farming in the country can be taken as a step to lessen the problem of monoculture as well as an alternative to wetland conservation to paddy rice cultivation. The informal preliminary survey conducted by MULEBA ASSOCIATION OF WOMEN LIVING WITH HIV/AIDS documented that, upland rice farming would be one of the way towards diversifying source of income earning base, combating transitory food insecurity and protection of wetlands.
Website URL
Innovation
What makes your idea unique?
The survey carried by MULEBA ASSOCIATION OF WOMEN LIVING WITH HIV/AIDS , showed that through the experiment done through 22 selected contact farmers in Kagera region, the crop is doing well and flourishing. The crop is drought and disease resistant/tolerant.
The national Seed Company (NASECO), a private seed company and producer of upland rice seeds in Uganda noticed that, these varieties are accompanied with such characteristics like: (Source: APEP and NASECO Uganda)
• Short germination and maturity period i.e. only 90 days from planting to harvest.
• contains more than 24% of protein contents,
• Not labour intensive
• Can be planted any where, regardless water availability as it is drought resistant, needs little irrigation if necessary.
• Savory taste and enticing aroma
• No complication in cooking and take short cooking time which result in time and firewood saving, and gender sensitive as they give time to women to cater for other family cores.
• Excellent milling and marketability assuring farmers big benefits.
• The crop has been used by millions of farmers in Uganda to improve their livelihoods such as increasing food security, nutrition and household income.
• Upland rice has been distinguished as a solution to both poverty and hunger.
• It has diverse characteristics that lead in to profitable yields.
• Production cost is modest comparing to other types of this crop (total input per acre US$ 200 v/v output US$ 1, 5000) (Source APEP, Uganda).
• High yield production (i.e. planting 30 Kg in one acre can produce between 2,500-3,000 Kgs), short period labour intensiveness,
• Can be cultivated at any field regardless the uniqueness of that land.
• Any farmer can adapt and adopt the technology regardless agricultural knowledge limitations, academic background, age or sex. It is always a one day training.
• Market is available locally and overseas.
• It is an employment creation activity
• Mostly important; environmental friendly (Wetlands are not disturbed).
Such have made me to submit my story as a suitable innovative way of overcoming nutrition problem in communities and increasing food security and incomes at the house hold levels.
Do you have a patent for this idea?
Impact
This Entry is about (Issues)
What impact have you had?
THIS IS STILL A PIROT PROJECT.
Problem
According to the National Strategy for Growth and Reduction of Poverty (NSGRP) (MKUKUTA), most of the communities in Tanzania live below the poverty line, the indicator being that they live below 1 US$ per day. They experience food scarcity and food insecurities overtime. Nevertheless, there are no any early warning initiatives to overcome calamities such as drought and deficiencies. In order to address this and attain MKUKUTA objectives and the Millennium Development Goals (e.g. MDG-1) Eradication of Extreme Poverty and Hunger by half by the year 2015 several interventions have to be taken that includes, eradicating hunger by ensuring food security while taking into account environmental sustainability of the land resource.
The National Strategy for Growth and Reduction of Poverty (NSGRP (2005) however, states further that poverty remains overwhelming in rural areas where about 87% of the poor population lives and highest percentage of them depend on agriculture. Agriculture accounts 45% of GDP and about 60% of export earnings in the past three years. It provides livelihoods to 82% of the population while its average annual growth rate is 4.8%.
Despite the significant role it plays to the GDP, it faces many constraints such as low productivity of land, labour and production inputs; underdeveloped irrigation potential; limited capital and access to financial services; inadequate agricultural technical support services; erosion of natural resource base; environmental degradation; poor coordination and limited technological capacity; monoculture and lack of modern agricultural skills.
It was found that Smallholder farmers are degrading their environment because of poverty. They have been carrying out a diverse of economic activities for sufficing their life sustenance in various forms, which in most cases pose threats to the environment and their welfare is still disappointing. They have been engaged in agriculture but there is a decrease of agricultural yields from one harvesting season to another because of various combined underlying factors. The situation makes farmers to have limited assets which create few response options when struck by shocks and stress (TzPPA (2003:39). The issue of monoculture; subsistence farming; access to financial services for agriculture and proper land use and management should be highly addressed through participatory initiatives
Actions
As aforesaid, this type of crop has been experienced in Kagera Region in two Districts (Muleba and Bukoba rural) in which the results have shown positive production, it is doing well and flourishing. The approach was to select 24 farmers from 12 villages of Muleba and Bukoba Rural Districts, two people (gender balanced) from each village. They were trained by an expert from Uganda (NASECO) for one day and provided with seeds, 30 Kgs planting one acre each. The results however, are encouraging. This triggered MULEBA ASOCCIATION OF WOMEN LIVING WITH HIV/AIDS to disseminate the same crop technology to other areas of the country.
• This experimental expansion project is expected to be implemented in Mwanza region to gain the pad rice producers experience.
• The proposed areas are Muleba, kyato and Bukoba Rural district in Kagera Region, and letter to Magu and Kwimba districts in Mwanza region .
• Forty farmers from twenty villages in each Region will be selected, trained and given farm inputs such as seeds for planting.
• Trainers will be from Uganda and Kagera region contact farmers who will give their experience.
• After the first batch of farmers experience, the large scale project will follow.
• In each region, one Coordinating NGO has been identified to coordinate the project activities between MULEBA ASSOCIATION OF WOMEN LIVING WITH HIV/AIDS and the project site. In Kagera region, MULEBA ASSOCIATION OF WOMEN LIVING WITH HIV/AIDS will implement the project activities while in Mwanza Region, CADA will coordinate the project activities.
Results
• Increased food security at house hold levels
• Increased incomes at house hold levels.
• Reduced land degradation
• Increased wetland conservation
• Increased employment opportunities
• Reduced poverty.
What will it take for your project to be successful over the next three years? Please address each year separately, if possible.
• We shall support smallholder farmers to establish and promote small-scale food processing units of agricultural yields. This may also create employment in particular for women who currently are facing the problem of disguised employment and such industries have few negative environmental effects. Conversely the process would increase the value of agricultural crops for easily accessing the market on a competitive basis at the local market and abroad.
• We shall establish irrigation schemes to reduce the relying on rainfall in agricultural activities Farmers have to be trained in irrigation technologies and early warning initiatives of droughts management and concern. Diversity of crops can be managed through irrigation farming especially in the event of drought.
• We shall build the capacity of farmers in sustainable agriculture that includes organic farming techniques. Besides this, the exercise would improve the capacity of farmers to manage and use land resources sustainably enhancing the efficiency of nutrient recycling on the farm, and reduce land degradation
What would prevent your project from being a success?
• Lack of enough resources.
• Inability of people to cope up with changes.
• Inadequate knowledge in food processing
• Dependency of rainfall in agriculture sector is unpredictable and unreliable and may lead to transitory food insecurity in some areas of the country.
• Un sustainable farming may lead to land degradation.
Lack of access to affordable upland seeds.
Lack of farmers to have access to training in upland farming and best farming practices.
lack of access to capital to purchase in puts.
lack of farmers to have access to market information.
How many people will your project serve annually?
1001‐10,000
What is the average monthly household income in your target community, in US Dollars?
Less than $50
Does your project seek to have an impact on public policy?
Sustainability
What stage is your project in?
Operating for less than a year
In what country?
Tanzania
Is your initiative connected to an established organization?
Yes
If yes, provide organization name.
MULEBA ASSOCIATION OF WOMEN LIVING WITH HIV/AIDS.
How long has this organization been operating?
1‐5 years
Does your organization have a Board of Directors or an Advisory Board?
Yes
Does your organization have any non-monetary partnerships with NGOs?
No
Does your organization have any non-monetary partnerships with businesses?
No
Does your organization have any non-monetary partnerships with government?
No
Please tell us more about how these partnerships are critical to the success of your innovation.
• Thy may give loans , where house ovrdrafts, allowing farmers to have immidiate credit aginst thier stock which they can pay once prices rises and have sold thie rice.
They may acess farmers to market information
They may build capacity with farmers on proper storage techiniques to reduce pest infections.
policies on taxes may also reduce.
What are the three most important actions needed to grow your initiative or organization?
Accessing farmers to capital liek small grants, loans to purchase inputs like mills, tractors, and construction of irrigation schemes.
Training farmers in upland rice farming and other best farming practices.
Acessing farmers to market information.
Acessing farmers to better quality seeds.
The Story
What was the defining moment that led you to this innovation?
This was nutrition problem, food insecurity, unemployment problem, environmental degradation, abject poverty
Tell us about the social innovator behind this idea.
To fulfill the following objectives.
• Improvement of farmers general knowledge and skills in agriculture and sustainable utilization of natural resources for environmental promotion and increased production.
• Reduction of abject poverty among the farming communities through agricultural diversification and sustainable use, management and utilization of available resources to increase productivity that would raise their standard of living. This includes introduction and promotion of upland rice.
• Diversification of various source of income to smallholder farmers through introduction of small-scale food processing factories for agricultural produce.
• Increasing land productivity through promoting and encouraging farmers to adapt and adopt sustainable agricultural practices by making the use of organic farming and irrigation technologies and mechanized agriculture.
How did you first hear about Changemakers?
Web Search (e.g., Google or Yahoo)
If through another, please provide the name of the organization or company
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