Co-operative News - Tanzania, United Republic of

Obama backs co-operative efforts against world hunger

AnthonyMurray — Mon, 21 May 2012 11:31:54 +0000

A partnership with co-operatives to fight global hunger has been announced by US President Barack Obama.

The New Alliance for Food Security and Nutrition, part of the Grow Africa initiative, is a shared commitment between governments and private enterprises to achieve sustained and inclusive agricultural growth in Africa over the next ten years.

Announced at the G8 Symposium on Global Agriculture and Food Security in Washington on Friday, President Obama said: "Governments, like those in Africa, that are committed to agricultural development and food security, they agree to take the lead — building on their own plans by making tough reforms and attracting investment.

"Donor countries — including G8 members and international organisations — agree to more closely align our assistance with these country plans. And the private sector — from large multinationals to small African co-operatives, your NGOs and civil society groups — agree to make concrete and continuing commitments as well, so that there is an alignment between all these sectors."

The US$3 billion investment from the private sector will help to strengthen areas across the agricultural chain, including irrigation, processing, trading, financing and infrastructure, which will impact millions of smallholder farmers.

Rabobank, the global food and agribusiness bank, is the largest backer within the co-operative movement, which intends to launch a lending facility in West Africa that would provide up to US$135 million in loans over five years to small and medium‐size companies in the region which participate in the agricultural value chain, ranging from production, processing and logistics to services and technology.

Other co-operatives pledging support include ADMAS Farmers Cooperative Union, Ethiopia; Becho‐Weliso Farmers Cooperative Union, Ethiopia; and Oromia Coffee Farmers Cooperative Union, Ethiopia.

Added President Obama: "Today, I can announce that 45 companies — from major international corporations to African companies and co-operatives — have pledged to invest more than $3 billion to kick off this effort. And we’re also going to fast-track new agricultural projects so they reach those in need even quicker."

The President said "this has to be all hands on deck"; and that more nations, organisations, companies and NGOs should help with the challenges of development across the world.

He added: "We’re going to sustain the commitments we made three years ago, and we’re going to speed things up. And we’re starting with these three countries —Tanzania, Ghana and Ethiopia — precisely because of their record in improving agriculture and food security.

"But this is just the beginning. In the coming months, we’ll expand to six countries. We’ll welcome other countries that are committed to making tough reforms. We’ll welcome more companies that are willing to invest. We’re going to hold ourselves accountable; we’ll measure results. And we’ll stay focused on clear goals: boosting farmers’ incomes, and over the next decade, helping 50 million men, women and children lift themselves out of poverty."

President Obama announces the launch of the New Alliance for Food Security and Nutrition

Rabobank is one of 45 organisations to show a commitment to the initiative. Chief Executive Piet Moerland has signed a Letter of Intent with the International Finance Corporation to create the West Africa Agribusiness Development Corporation.

The scheme will initially be operated in Ghana, Nigeria and Cote d'Ivoire, but can easily be expanded into other countries. It aims to loan US$135m over five years through 200 intermediaries, which will benefit smallholder farmers.

WAAD is based on the proven concept in Latin America (LAAD), which has been successful in agri-finance for more than 40 years. Over these 40 years, LAAD has successfully realised its mission while showing increasingly healthy financials, generating over 120,000 new jobs in mainly rural areas. Over the next five years, the WAAD corporation will provide access to financial services to small- and medium-sized companies across the agricultural value chain in West Africa.

 Berry Marttin, member of the Executive Board Rabobank, said: “Feeding the world requires investing in agriculture, as farmers feed the world. And without Africa it will be impossible to meet the increasing demand for food worldwide in the coming decades. In most African countries access to finance is badly lacking. Through our subsidiary Rabo Development we undertake investment and advisory activities in Sub-Saharan Africa to increase finance options for agricultural entrepreneurs."

• For more information about the Grow Africa initiative, visit: www.growafrica.com

Tanzania officially Launches IYC

Ajay Jha — Thu, 29 Mar 2012 03:25:19 +0000

Tanzania's President Jakaya Mrisho Kikwete launched the International Year of Cooperatives for the country at the Mnazi Mmoja Grounds in Dar es Salaam on March 20th, 2012.

The event was marked with the laying of the foundation stone of the Ushirika Tower, a 20-story building of the Tanzania Federation of Cooperatives (TFC).

The President was joined by Jumanne Maghembe, MP Minister of Agriculture, Cooperatives and Food Security, Hassan Wakasuvi, Chairman of the TFC and other dignitaries. Official representatives from the UN, ILO andICA were also present to witness the launch. The celebrations were also marked by exhibitions where cooperatives showcased their activities.

Recognizing the historical and social significance the cooperative movement brought to Tanzania, Kikwete urged cooperatives to restore the glory of the movement in the country. He said that cooperative unions should focus on activities which enhanced their work and urged them to recruit committed leaders who would fight for the development of their members. Moreover, he also highlighted the need to review shortfalls and problems which led to the collapse of cooperatives in the past and learn to run the movement better this time around. And the government will provide its full support of cooperatives that would enable their growth.

Alexio Musindo, the Director of the International Labour Organisation (ILO) for East African Countries re-echoed the words of the ILO Director-General Juan Somavia stating that cooperatives empower people by enabling even the poorest segments of the population to participate in economic progress; and that they create job opportunities for those who have skills but little or no capital, and they provide protection by organizing mutual help in communities.

He also highlighted the partnership between the UN, the Government and the cooperative movement both on the Mainland and inZanzibar. The UN, through the COOP Africa Project and other UN Joint Programmes and has supported cooperative development activities in various aspects.

Courtesy:UN Cooperative News

Helen Usiri: Leading Women Everywhere She Goes

AnthonyMurray — Tue, 06 Mar 2012 20:51:50 +0000

When Helen Usiri established Nronga Women’s Cooperative in 1987, the men in her community scoffed at the notion that she could become a successful entrepreneur, and they predicted her business would collapse within six months. Yet, Helen knew better; and, 24 years later, she has silenced her skeptics with the cooperative’s success.

In Tanzania’s rural Arusha-Moshi region, women traditionally lack access to household assets, as cultural norms dictate men are responsible for crop farming and the income that it brings. Meanwhile, women are responsible for dairying. Understanding this paradigm, Land O’Lakes International Development has been focused on empowering female farmers to maximize their outputs and incomes since it began providing development assistance in the region in 1999. Under the USDA-funded Tanzania Dairy Development Program (TDDP) that began in early 2011, Land O’Lakes has been capitalizing on this decade of experience and relationships with women’s cooperatives like Nronga to improve commercial milk production and processing, so that women such as Helen can support themselves and enjoy an improved quality of life.

As a widow with four school-age children of her own, and three others left in her care by family members, Helen faced a daunting task as the family’s sole financial provider. Although she had six cows – three heifers and three female calves – she couldn’t afford to care for them all while supporting her seven children. And so she decided to do something unconventional: she began her own heifer pass-on scheme.

She decided to keep two of the cows and give the other four to women in her community. Each recipient agreed that when the cows began having calves, they would each keep one female and give any others who were born back to Helen. Meanwhile, Helen would raise and sell the male calves, but would give the females to other women in her community, so as to continue the virtuous circle. Her idea was a huge success. It not only provided other women in her community with a critical dairy asset, but it gave Helen a lasting income that enabled her to put all of her children through school. And her plans paid off, with all seven children ultimately completing secondary school, two of whom have already graduated from college, and another two currently enrolled in higher education.

But Helen recalls many instances where she faced gender-based discrimination along the way. Soon after she cofounded Nronga a quarter of a century ago, a donor presented the organization with a car to facilitate their milk deliveries. But, the men in the community openly mocked the donation; in their minds, women were incapable of managing a business without a man’s help, let alone a vehicle. But, Helen quietly proved them wrong. After two years, the cooperative was doing so well that they bought another car with their profits. Slowly, the men began to respect Helen and her colleagues, and were forced to admit the women were not only successfully running their business – but they were actually prospering. She said in reflection, “No matter what you are going through, I’ve learned to never give up.”

Although Nronga Women’s Cooperative was very successful, the women faced many stumbling blocks along the way. Without a cooling tank, their milk would often spoil, which would diminish Helen’s income and that of other cooperative members. Through USAID-funded Cooperative Development Program, in 2001, Land O’Lakes provided Nronga with a 1,300-liter cooling tank. Not only did this prevent their milk from spoiling, but it also allowed them to collect milk twice a day. They not only doubled their daily milk collections from 500 to 1,000 liters per day, but they are planning on opening their own processing plant in Bomang’ombe later this year.

With support from Land O’Lakes, Helen is slowly chipping away at entrenched gender constraints. Nronga’s members receive direct payments for the milk they sell, which is a huge step forward in a culture where men are responsible for household financial assets. As women are the primary caretakers of livestock in Tanzania, they spend huge amounts of time caring for their cows, from feeding and washing them, to milking them and delivering the milk for sale. Helen says that she and the other women in Nronga Women’s Cooperative have derived an incredible sense of self-worth and pride from earning an income from all of their labor.

Helen strongly believes in the power of the dairy value chain as a way to empower women, and she is particularly proud to know that she has encouraged and inspired other women in her own community to take control of their economic futures and rethink traditional gender roles. She stressed that women “…should be examples; we are not here to receive help, but to help others.”

But, she still has a lot she wants to accomplish – particularly completing her own education. Years back, Helen declined a full scholarship to attend any school of her choice, because she knew she needed to focus on earning money to care for her children. But now that her children are nearly done with their schooling, the 55-year-old is exploring how to pursue her own degree, while expanding her business and helping other women to take control of their futures.

Despite being told that she would never succeed in business 24 years ago, Helen knew she had a greater calling. “If there’s one thing I’ve learned from my experience,” said Helen, “it is that every woman should trust in herself; a woman is a leader wherever she is.”