The JaneGoodall Institute Tanzania through its projects empowers women and youth to benefit from the sustainable use of natural resources!
I barely got any surplus from my farm for a long time, said Idda Joel, the family food intake was inadequate, and life was miserable.
Meet Saida Idda Joel, a 31 year old married mother of three from Sunuka village in Kigoma region, who took part on Landscape Conservation in Western Tanzania (LCWT) project in Kigoma.
What were the reasons for the low yields?
She explained that the soil had lost its fertility and that she did not adhere to good agronomic practices (GAPs). She, like most people in her village, could not afford commercial fertilizer. To get fertile soil, Idda undertook farming in the forest, but still, she could not hit the target. “I spent much time farming in the forest,” she recalled. “It was very expensive for me to bring the produce home,” she explained.
However, Idda now lives a better life because the LCWT project trained her and other people in compost-making, improved farming methods, wildlife protection, and gender equity. As a result, she and others are seeing improved yields. “Compost performs miracles,” she said happily. “Hunger is no more.”
Idda and her husband harvested 20 kilograms of Bambara nuts, 170 tins of husked rice, and 6 tins of maize in the previous farming season. The couple earned Tsh 300,000/= from selling the Bambara nuts, Tsh 3,400,000/= from selling the husked rice, and Tsh 600,000/= from selling the maize. The couple started a piggery project, built a three-bedroom house, and bought a new sofa set. She and her husband jointly own four-acres. “Land is a valuable asset,” she said, smiling.
She said that compost-making is easy, as the raw materials are readily available in the village. “Where there is a will, there is a way,” she said. “Compost is the way to go!”She noted that change was slowly taking place and that men were increasingly working alongside women to achieve shared goals. Her husband, a former member of the Roots and Shoots Club at Muungano Primary School, had learned about the value of gender equity, which had improved the couple’s relationship. The couple shares domestic chores and works on the farm together. “Unity is strength,” she said. “We trust each other and make collective decisions for our common good.”
According to Kabarana Maganga, Sunuka Ward Extension Officer, the couple serves as a good example to other couples in relation to good relations and gender equity. “They have influenced a couple of husbands to cooperate with their wives in undertaking income-generating activities,” he said, smiling. As a member of the Female Mushroom Collection Group in the village, Idda collects wild mushrooms from the forests and trains women in environmental protection, for example in controlling wildfires.
Furthermore, pig manure from their zero grazing pig project has enriched their compost as well as their diets and income. Knowing this, more young farmers in the village started raising pork for these multiple benefits.
Idda’s tremendous achievement is attributed to, among other things, their conformity to the family planning and reproductive health advice they received from the LCWT training and in school. Their children are healthier, as they were breastfed for a long time and are cared for well. Idda is in good health, as she had more time to recover from childbirth. Besides, the couple has more resources to care for their children, for they are engaged in economic activities. “I live a happy life,” Idda said.
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