• Sign up for Skillshare news:

Promoting organic agriculture in Tanzania

 

Ginger farming in TanzaniaMichael Farrelly has more than eight years’ experience of fundraising for community regeneration projects.  He has worked for local councils and communities in Doncaster, Manchester and Birmingham in the UK, and on drinking water projects in Botswana and West Africa.  

 

During his social science masters in Rural Development, Michael focused on sustainable agriculture, project management, policy analysis and research methods – conducting research with organic farmers and gardeners, extension workers and NGOs in Zimbabwe.  He is now putting this knowledge and experience to good use as a Skillshare International development worker in Tanzania.  In February 2010, Michael started his placement at the Tanzania Organic Agriculture Movement (TOAM), the national umbrella body for organic farming.   

 

Approximately three quarters of Tanzania’s population live in rural areas and rely on agriculture for their livelihood.  Organic agriculture offers economically viable, socially just and environmentally friendly solutions to meet Tanzania’s agricultural and economic needs.  It is a particularly important way of farming for the most vulnerable, and poorest farmers in rural and peri-urban areas because it utilises the limited resources that small-scale farmers have available locally at minimal cost.  Through networking and by disseminating information, TOAM co-ordinates and promotes the development of the organic farming sector to support sustainable livelihoods among smallholder producers.  Michael’s main role as Programme Officer is to support TOAM by building the organisation’s capacity and fundraising. 

 

Ginger farmers in TanzaniaSince being in Tanzania  Michael has successfully led a team to secure funding from Netherlands-based NGO Hivos.  The 240,000 euros will be used to support around 8,000 smallholder farmers to grow organic ginger and hibiscus in the regions of Tanga, Kilimanjaro, Dodoma and Songea.  It will enable the farmers to learn about organic farming methods, build new skills and develop links to markets for their produce.  The wider community will also reap the benefits as the funding will mean improved sustainable livelihoods, increased incomes and enhanced food security of smallholder farmers and their families. 

 

Michael says: "Fundraising can sometimes seem a bit tedious, dealing with infuriating budget spreadsheets and mind-bending logical frameworks, but being a development worker means you really have to think about how the project is actually going to work, and how it can best make a difference to people's lives.  Working with my Tanzanian colleagues, there's a team-building shared sense of achievement in getting a good quality bid in just before the deadline, and a huge buzz when you get a result."