In my last newsletter I described to you how one of CRWRC’s partners, Sengerema Informal Sector Association, recently reached a level of sustainability to “graduate” from regular CRWRC funding and training. My role with SISA now is to provide occasional counsel and resources. As I do this, I am realizing how SISA’s work has significant, broad-reaching, and inspiring implications for the community and the Christian church. It illustrates the effectiveness of CRWRC’s approach to community transformation, and the difference we work to achieve with all our partners.
Land Rights and Bio-Fertilizer, So What?
In my last newsletter I described to you how one of CRWRC’s partners, Sengerema Informal Sector Association, recently reached a level of sustainability to “graduate” from regular CRWRC funding and training. My role with SISA now is to provide occasional counsel and resources. As I do this, I am realizing how SISA’s work has significant, broad-reaching, and inspiring implications for the community and the Christian church. It illustrates the effectiveness of CRWRC’s approach to community transformation, and the difference we work to achieve with all our partners.
Acquiring knowledge (e.g. of improved farming techniques) does not always translate easily into changed attitudes and behaviour. If we were any different in Canada, perhaps a pastor would only need to preach a sermon once and we would all change. In Tanzania, farmers across the country have heard about land rights and titles, proper crop spacing, bio-fertilizer, disease-resistant seeds, better irrigation, but they continue to plant and harvest using the old routines and tools. In this year of limited and late rain fall, the result has been few crops and poor harvests, and many farmers are concerned about how they will feed their families.
However, farmers who’ve participated in SISA’s agriculture program have seen success. Why did they utilize the tools needed to ensure an adequate harvest? The answer is that changes in attitude take years of dedication and hard work. SISA’s involvement with CRWRC for more than ten years has reaped not only healthy harvests of corn, but also attitudes of self-sufficiency, pro-activeness, and long-term planning. We have found effective ways of helping community members connect the dots between their efforts and results they did not realize they could achieve.
Our hope and our goal is that with new attitudes in their agricultural practices, the Christians in these communities will also increase in their faith and their sense of personal responsibility. This can build a healthy community, and SISA is working toward building communities that are healthy and whole in every way.
Stories of success
As part of a Land Rights and Food Security project funded through CRWRC’s Global Agriculture Ministry Fund , SISA’s program coordinator Joseph Shigulu invited 30 farmers from 10 project villages (300 in total) for training on how to register for ownership of their land with the Tanzanian government. It’s often difficult to attract people to these training events, even if it’s free. Imagine SISA’s surprise when the trainers arrived at the first of these villages and found 200 people waiting! Word spread like wildfire, and villages around and beyond Sengerema asked for training, and then government officers and other NGOs started to inquire as well. Now, more than 200 farmers have applied to the Tanzanian government to have their land surveyed. Once these farmers obtain rights to their land, they will have the confidence to invest in it without fear that it might one day be seized with no compensation. The Land Office Department had to build a separate building specifically for processing the land certificates. What a blessing it is that governments are responding to the needs of the people because of SISA’s work!
Imagine SISA’s surprise when the trainers arrived at the first of these villages and found 200 people waiting!
Mr. and Mrs. Jablon Mayala of Ibisabigeni village participated in the SISA Land Rights and Food Security project. They are thrilled by their harvest this year, which exceeded their expectations. They have modified their agricultural practices with SISA’s guidance to use better planting techniques, higher quality seeds, bio-fertilizer, and bio-hormones.
Mr. Gaudence Mtambulo from the village of Tengenye, harvested 30 bags of maize from his fields; more than the 25 he needs to feed his family. He sold the surplus to generate much-needed income for his family’s needs. His sense of accomplishment and empowerment cannot be acquired by waiting in line for a free handout of grain.
If the stories of the Mayalas and Mtambulos have inspired you, imagine how inspiring they must be to their peers! In fact, farmers and organizations from the surrounding area are requesting SISA to bring land rights workshops to their community as well. As a result of SISA’s success, and the requests of more farmers, SISA has been given funding from CRWRC to continue the project for another year.
Please pray that in SISA’s projects, and with all of CRWRC’s partners, more and more people would be inspired to work hard, adapt to change, plan for the future, respond to the needs of their family and community, and work to build a healthy, strong, and godly church.
Two Enns Men for the Price of One
We were very happy to get a visit from my father Rob for two weeks in April. He also works in community development and has over 30 years experience in many countries. He was inspired to donate his time to help CRWRC’s partners, so we provided two-day training workshops to the leadership of the AICT Church in two locations. The topics were team building, participatory leadership, and evaluation. Both workshops used the two days to their maximum, generated excellent discussions and learning, and identified many areas that can be strengthened with ongoing coaching. This August I will attend training in ”Facilitating Organizational Development,” which will expand my ability to help CRWRC partners in this way.
Blessings,
Program Consultant
World Renew Tanzania
