By Our Reporter
An integrated system developed by the Islands of Peace (IDP) organization has enabled 50 traders dealing in agroecological crops and agricultural products in the Arusha region to follow proper business procedures and ecological principles.
This was stated by the Executive Director of IDP, Ayesiga Buberwa, while speaking to this reporter over the weekend in Dodoma about their strategies for promoting agroecological farming in the country.
Ayesiga said that during the National Ecological Organic Agriculture Conference of Tanzania (NEOAC) he presented a topic titled “Technological Development and Food System Transformation in Agroecological Businesses in Northern Tanzania.”
Also highlighted the strengths and challenges, the lessons learned, and the joint initiatives developed to support the transition toward full agroecological farming.
She explained that the organization designed this system to help a group of traders who are engaged in agroecological agriculture.
Ayesiga noted that doing business is one thing and the principles of business are another; therefore, they will continue working closely with the 50 traders until they reach mutually beneficial outcomes.
“Transitioning to agroecological farming is a process and involves many aspects. There are obstacles and opportunities, so we are looking together at how we can move forward.
We have designed tools to help us and set indicators that will show the progress we have made and help us identify other areas we can work on,” he said.
She added that currently 50 traders from the Arusha and Kilimanjaro regions are involved in agroecological crops and products.
“In Arusha and Kilimanjaro we are proud of the producers—farmers, processors, market vendors, and those supplying food to restaurants,” he said.
Ayesiga said the group of traders evaluates its performance every six months to see whether it is doing well.
She added that IDP is working to ensure that the local market first benefits from fresh agroecological produce before focusing on export markets.
The director also noted that despite ongoing efforts to promote agroecological farming, challenges still exist, including issues related to education, policy, and others that require collective cooperation to resolve.
On his part, Biovision Program Manager Thomas Kayper said that Tanzania has performed well in the area of agroecological farming, but more effort is needed to achieve larger goals.
He added that in recent years more farmers have shown interest in shifting to this type of farming, which gives stakeholders strong hope for the future.
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