Please don't stop fundraising for Awet!

Construction of Awet Girls' Dormitory is complete. Now we need to build latrine/shower facilities and purchase bunk beds. We have yet to reach our goal of raising Cdn $65,000. The good news is that we are only Cdn $10,000 short. We've been discussing this shortfall today, breaking it down like this: If 10,000 people each gave $1, Awet would be set. If 5,000 people each gave $2, we'd be there! If 1,000 people each parted with $10, that would be it!

We appeal to our friends and supporters to dig into your pockets and spare some change. Please visit CPAR's website to make a donation. Every little bit will help us reach our goal to ensure that Awet dormitory is ready for girls at the start of the new school year in January.

Blog Action Day 2009: Climate Change

Today is Blog Action Day 2009, and the purpose is to draw attention to the topic of "Climate Change". Controversy around the causes and consequences of "Climate Change" and "Global Warming" is kind of irrelevant. Fact is, here in Karatu District subsistence farmers have an extremely close relationship with their physical environment. We are presently waiting for the short rains, which should be occurring about now and which many fear will be late or not arrive at all. It is hot, dry and dusty, and water is in short supply. For those households with power, electricity cuts are frequent. But, rather than sitting around talking about climate change and what a downer it is, farmers are taking action to responsibly manage and improve their physical environment.

In anticipation of the upcoming rains, they are ready to plant thousands of seedlings. CPAR Tz’s nursery is ready to go with a variety of seedlings for agroforestory and planting around households. Many farmers are practicing Conservation Agriculture, leaving cover crops and crop residues in the field for mulching, adding nutrients and conserving moisture in the soil, thereby preventing erosion and using any and all rainfall to its greatest effect. They conserve and transport manure to the fields instead of burning it and relying on expensive chemical fertilizers. Simple energy saving stoves, which consume 1/3 the firewood of the traditional three-stone fire, are in growing use and there is considerable interest in alternative sources of power, for example solar, which is not yet an accessible and affordable technology to a rural household.

Learning from the example of subsistence farmers in rural Tanzania, CPAR Tanzania's message this Blog Action Day: "It doesn't matter who you are or where you are, you have a responsiblity to respect and care for the environment."

Click on the Blog Action Day logo to see what everybody else is saying and get ideas on what you can do.

Participatory Baseline Exercise Bunda

CPAR Tz's team is back from three weeks in Bunda spent facilitating a participatory exercise in rural communities to learn about their food security related issues and priorities.  The team used participatory tools -- village histories, community mapping, transect walks, wealth ranking, seasonal calendar and gender activity profile -- to investigate issues in depth with community leaders and farmers.  The exercise resulted in each community preparing an Action Plan to address their priorities, which include increasing crop production through use of improved seeds and improved agronomic practices such as proper spacing, strategic weeding and timely harvesting.  CPAR Tz will be introducing the practice of Conservation Agriculture to the District Agriculture Department and women and men farmers in Bunda. 

Sexual and reproductive health issues including human rights, family planning, FGM, HIV&AIDS and gender-based violence were discussed at length, with gender-based violence emerging as a particularily hot issue.  Household conflict even showed up as an activity on the Seasonal Calendar during the period immediately following the harvest in April.  Women are responsible for most of the grueling farmwork --weeding, harvesting, threshing, cleaning, drying, etc.  However, when time comes to decide on disposal of the harvest -- how much for household use, how much to sell -- the man steps in, decides on his own with no consultation and keeps all the cash.  Bunda women are more than ready to take on the full spectrum of human rights and gender equality issues.  After having a strong and positive impact on household conflict and gender relations in Karatu rural communities, CPAR Tz's team is looking forward to tackling gender issues in Bunda.

Here's our nurse Husna helping out on Karukekere clinic day!