AWF Celebrates Inclusive Green Growth at the Nane Nane Agricultural Expo in Tanzania

Tanzania's Nane Nane Agricultural Exhibition celebrates the great strides made by farmers in the field with the support of innovative technology. This week-long agricultural expo, which is held annually in honor of Nane Nane Day on August 8, has been a pinnacle of success for the farmers and stakeholders in the country and beyond.

This year’s Nane Nane Exhibition theme was "Kilimo, mifugo na uvuvi kwa ukuaji wa uchumi wa nchi," which translates to "Agriculture, Livestock, and Fisheries for National Economic Development," which the African Wildlife Foundation (AWF) has been working to achieve using different Inclusive Green Growth approaches in collaboration with the Southern Agricultural Growth Corridors of Tanzania (SAGCOT) Initiative.

Minister of Livestock and Fisheries Hon. Luhaga Mpina visited the AWF pavilion booth, where the team showcased the produce from the farmers and expounded on the practices that have shown higher yields. He congratulated the team for the excellent preparation and encouraged Tanzanians to adopt the solar drying facility for cocoa beans drying during the rainy season. The Minister also commended the use of the beehive fence to curb human-wildlife conflict.

“Productivity in many of the countries in Africa is around 25 percent of the potential we should produce, and the cause of this is the low level of utilization of technology across the value chain. Farmers are not using technology in production, processing, or marketing. Also, farmers are not informed on where to get resources for investment, especially finance and infrastructure,” said SAGCOT CEO Geoffrey Kirenga.

In a bid to move this initiative forward, AWF has worked with the communities within the Kilombero Valley landscape through the introduction of the climate-smart agricultural practices. This has been a collaborative effort with partners such as Kilombero Sugar Company and the Tanzania Agricultural Research Institute, Kibaha.

The initiative has ensured that sugarcane farmers in the region have access to durable seedlings that are drought resistant, consume less water, and return high yields.

“Four years ago, AWF started a project in Kilombero aimed at educating farmers on best farming practices using durable seeds. They gave the farmers seedlings in groups, and indeed we have seen a difference between the regular seeds and the durable seeds given to us by AWF,” said Mrashi Jumbe, a sugarcane farmer from Somo Village.

“AWF has been working within Kilombero Valley in collaboration with and support from Global Nature Fund, the German development agency GIZ, and other partners to ensure that the landscape continues to thrive. We are glad that we are on the way to making Kilombero the nation’s next green belt,” emphasized AWF Program Manager Pastor Magingi.

AWF has been working within Kilombero Valley in partnership with IUCN SUSTAIN and Global Nature Fund with financial support from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands (DGIS) and the German Development Agency (GIZ), and other partners to ensure that the landscape continues to thrive.