United Republic of Tanzania: agricultural sector development programme - Livestock: support for pastoral and agro-pastoral development

The goal of the programme is to reduce poverty, improve food security and increase the incomes of communities that are highly dependent on livestock for their livelihood. The BSF component is an entry point for more effectively targeting pastoralists where targeting is a challenge. The decentralization approach of the Government means that local governments access resources only when they meet certain eligibility criteria under the fiscal allocation system.

Achievements

In 2008, the programme made good progress in raising awareness of programme activities in participating villages through the establishment of project committees and the signing of agreements between the villages and the districts. Community health staff and community health workers have been trained on the prevention and management of zoonotic diseases and health information management. Training was also provided on effective use of scarce water and on maintenance of water sources to impart a sense of ownership of these sources to the community.

Project objectives

• Improve the livelihoods of the poorest ago-pastoralists and pastoralists
• Strengthen the capacity of livestock communities, both institutionally and technically
• Enhance the delivery of livestock development services to smallholders
• Improve marketing infrastructure and marketing systems for livestock products
• Strengthen national and local government institutions to provide services to the livestock subsector