ARDHI UNIVERSITY

SCHOOL OF SPATIAL PLANNING AND SOCIAL SCIENCES

DEPARTMENT OF URBAN AND REGIONAL PLANNING

RP 332; AGRICULTURE AND DEVELOPMENT

ASSIGNMENT ONE

GROUP MEMBER

S/N NAME REG NO;

1 MASWE MARWA 10742/T.2017

2 NGOKOROME TONY 10747/T.2017

3 KANJE IMELDA ARISTID 10739/T.2017

4 MWAMBUGI SALOME 10745/T.2017

5 LOTH GODFREY 11062/T.2017

 QUESTION;

Study and understand about the SAGCOT region in Tanzania

i. Identify/ map development organizations which have development interventions or

projects in the SAGCOT region with the specific focus to the clusters of Ihemi, Mbarali
and Kilombero (2017-2022)
ii. Identify the activities under those interventions/ development projects and the locations
where the activities are implemented
iii. Explain qualitatively or quantitatively how COVID-19 has affected the implementation
targets of the development activities in the SAGCOT region
iv. In what ways the development projects would have been better designed to contribute to
successful development in situation of global pandemic such as COVID-19

ANSWER;

The Southern Agriculture Growth Corridor of Tanzania (SAGCOT) Initiative is a Public-Private

Partnership initiated at the World Economic Forum (WEF) Africa (WEFA) Summit in Dar es
Salaam in 2010.[ CITATION Kir18 \l 1033 ]

Its implementation period runs for 20 years up to 2030. Its ultimate objective is to boost
agricultural productivity, improve food security, reduce poverty and ensure environmental
sustainability through the commercialization of smallholder agriculture.

I. These are development organizations which have development interventions or projects in

the SAGCOT region specifically in Ihemi cluster, Mbarali, and Kilombero cluster.
a. Building Rural Income through Enterprises (BRITEN) in Ihemi cluster in Iringa
region specifically within great Ruaha River flows down to feed the Mtera reservoir.
b. CARE International in Kilombero Cluster in Morogoro region.
c. Kilimo Trust in Kilombero cluster in Morogoro region specifically Kilosa District

1
II. These are activities which are performed by different development organizations as
follows below

CARE International. is implementing a fourth year project which is Tajirika na Kilimo (Profit
from Farming) established in November 2018 (2018-2022). Tajirika na Kilimo is funded by Care
International Tanzania allowing more youth access to the Vocational training at VETA. This aim
to offer youth of Tanzania business training and soft skills in line with current market demands
of the agribusiness sector. Also serve to redress some of the challenges youth faces like access to
quality information, resources and market they so need desperately.[ CITATION Dav16 \l 1033 ]

Activities to be carried out while implementing Tajirika na Kilimo project

i. To provide business training to youths

ii. To provide soft skills to youths
iii. To supply youth farmers with agricultural inputs

All these activities were or will be implanted in Kilombero cluster in Morogoro region
particularly to the following wards Kibaoni, Kiberege and Mofu

KILIMO TRUST Is the non-profit organization working on agriculture for development the
east African community in Kenya Rwanda Tanzania Burundi and Uganda. Kilimo trust is
implementing a three-year project Competitive African Rice Initiative (CARI) Tanzania (2019-
2022). The project aims to double the incomes of 30,000 smallholder rice producers 30% of
whom will be women. Also deals with other challenges facing the rice value chain in Tanzania
like low productivity, underutilization of installed capacity of mills.[ CITATION SAG19 \l 1033 ]

Activities to be carried out while implementing the CARI project

i. To train farmers
ii. To supply farmers with inputs
iii. To establish demonstration plots for farmers to enhance learning
iv. To link producers of paddy to financial institution

All these activities were or will be implemented in Kilombero cluster specifically to the
following wards Mlimba, Kidatu, and Igima

2
 Building Rural Income through Enterprises (BRITEN); non-profit organization that was set up
in 2011 to help accelerate agriculture transformation in Tanzania through agricultural
development initiatives that are designed to facilitate market access, enhance agribusiness
competitiveness, increase productivity and improve access to inputs and finance for value chain
actors. BRITEN implements PiATA-TIJA project of six years in Ihemi cluster found in Iringa
region specifically in Ludewa and Suka ward from 2017 to 2023. The aim of this project is to
support and promote smallholder agriculture transformation from subsistence to commercialized
modern farming and agri-business for economic growth and poverty reduction. [ CITATION Kir18 \l
1033 ]

Activities to be carried out while implementing PiATA-TIJA project

i. To supply farmers with agricultural inputs so as to increase staple crop productivity for
small holder farmers,
ii. To strengthen and expand access to output markets,
iii. to introduce new skills and training so as to increase capacity of small holder farming
households and agricultural systems to better prepare for and adapt to shocks and stresses
and
iv. to train farmers in order to strengthen capacity for farmer organizations and other focus
agricultural value chain actor.

All these activities were or will be implemented in Ihemi Cluster in Iringa region particularly
Ihimbo, Mahenge

III. COVID-19 has qualitatively or quantitatively affected the implementation targets of the
development activities in the SAGCOT region as follow;
a) Lead to late supply of agriculture inputs hence result to accomplishment of inputs supply
to farmers to go beyond the targeted time and fail to meet targeted production.
b) Lead difficulty to knowledge transfer since training became difficulty to reach the
targeted population due to restrictions or measures that were put by ministry of health in
order to escape from spreading COVID-19. Hence the targeted population didn’t get
training effectively and efficiently.

3
 c) Lead difficulty in accessing information, markets due to pressure that were resulted by
pandemic disease, therefore more attention were put on pandemic hence slow down to
meet the targeted goals.
IV. Development project would have been better designed to contribute to successful
development in situation of global pandemic such as COVID-19 as follow;
i. Any development project that aim to increase awareness (through training) of their
targeted population as a part of implementing the project should consider the issue of
technology based on communication especially online communication and not only to
depend on physical communication (like face to face communication) so should
encourage video online communication hence training activities can be done through
online when happening a situational of global pandemic disease like COVID19.
Therefore, training activities will be accomplished in a targeted time.
ii. In establishment of any development project should ensure 90% of the facilities
(materials) required to implement that project are found or obtained within the
location of established project and not to depend flow of those facilities from abroad
since when happening a global pandemic that lead to lock down, it cut off the flow of
those required materials hence supply of those materials to targeted population stop
and result failure to meet the targeted objectives. If facilities are found within the
location where the project is to be established the lock down cannot cut off the flow
of required materials for implementation of that project like agricultural inputs such
as fertilizers, implements.

4
References
Biasley, D. (2016). World Food Pogramme. Italy .

Kirenga, G. (2018). Ihemi Cluster Review.

SAGCOT. (2019). The SAGCOT Partnership and Financing Mechanisms.

UN. (2020). Policy Brief on Socio-Economic Impact Assessment in Tanzania.