Strengthening entrepreneurship skills of producer groups

Financer: Agriterra.

From 2012 onward Mviwata started serious regional programmes in three regions: Morogoro, Shinyanga and Kilimandjaro. Each region made choices for two commodities to promote, of areas to intervene and they recruited a regional facilitator. Farmer promoters were selected and the first training sessions took place. Demo-plots were installed and the groups to work with were started to be identified.
In 2013 this intervention logic will be strengthened. There will be more groups supported and more promoters trained. There has been a small budget reallocation in favor of the regions. Attention will be mostly on production improvement through better planting techniques, better and more inputs (seeds, fertiliser) and mobilisation of funds for investments through farmer savings groups.
2012:
The present project is the result of a formulation mission in march during which three middle level networks were proposed to get involved in collaboration with Agriterra. Those MLN are: Kilimandjaro, Morogoro and Shinyanga.
This is a new way of working with Mviwata, trying to have economic activities and services much more decentralised. The three regions will operate rather independently, but with capacity building support of national level network following the subsidiarity principle.
Within each region districts, villages, groups and commodities are selected to work on. MLN will be strengthened on organisational matters as well as on economic services development.Only in 2012 Mviwata started with a local entrepreneurship programme after a conception mission at the end of March 2012 to clarify the new approach of Agriterra and to exchange with Mviwata people on how to implement this within their context.
So the project as such only started in August with baseline surveys in the three regions selected: Kilimandjaro, Morogoro and Shinyanga. Choices were made for villages, commodities and promoters. 38 promoters have been selected of which 16 are female.
A second stage consisted in capacity strengthening of the middle level networks (in governance, financial management, planning and monitoring, entrepreneurship, etc) and the promoters (on improved agricultural practices, entrepreneurship, group management, facilitation skills).
In the implementation stage 45 demo-plots have been installed and 1910 farmers have been trained around those plots. As the activities started late there are only some production results of those demo-plots.
Observations:
Mviwata finally made a good set-up for the implementation of the local entrepreneurship programme, but as activities started late, results are still limited. But the change in mind set needed for this has started.
Still there are points to improve through the learning by doing approach: the middle level networks need to function more autonomously and the local groups have to be better targeted and organised around collective economic action.
Perspectives:
The project will pursue as it started. Attention will be paid to further decentralisation, capacity building of the promoters and local groups formation.

The project proposal is composed by four parts: three regional plans and one umbrella, national network plan.

Morogoro
The project will be implemented in two districts which are Mvomero (Langali and Mzumbe ward) and Morogoro rural district (Kiloka ward). In total 9 villages will be covered by 9 local promotors (4 female). In total 450 farmers (160 female) organised in 18 groups will be strengthened on entrepreneurial skills, group management, improved agronomic practice, etc. Each village will install a farmers' field school.
Within the retained villages 3 saccos will be strengthened, as well as the regional network of SACCOS of Morogoro.
At regional level the office the overal coordination will be done by a coordinator and an accountant. The economic service development and economic capacity building will be done by an economic facilitator.

Shinyanga
The project wil be implemented in 2 districts, namely Shinyanga rural (Itwangi ward) and Bukombe (Masumbwe ward). 550 farmers (260 female) organised in 22 groups will benefit from this project. Maize and paddy has been selected because they are the main food crops in Shinyanga with a higher market potential. Eleven promotors (5 female) will be trained to strengthen producer groups in their economic development.
Within the two wards, 4 SACCOS will be supported.
At regional level the office the overall coordination will be done by a coordinator and an accountant. The economic service development and economic capacity building will be done by an economic facilitator.

Kilimandjaro
The project will be implemented in two wards namely Masama Rundugai and Machame South in Hai district. The two wards together comprise 10 villages. In this project 500 smallholder producer (220 female) organised in 20 groups will benefit. The target crops in these villages are maize and paddy. The project will also help to build the capacities of leaders and members of eight SACCOS and facilitate increase farmers access to finance buy linking them with the financial service providers.
At regional level the office the overall coordination will be done by a coordinator and an accountant. The economic service development and economic capacity building will be done by an economic facilitator.

Mviwata national
National level will have an important role in strenghthening MLN in financial management, project management, economic service development and other capacity building subjects.

Expected results are:
Increase in leadership capacity of the leaders of MLN and hence an increase in service delivery to farmers in the villages. A total of 1500 farmers (40% female) from three regions organised in 60 groups are expected to benefit from this project.
Increased entrepreneurship and production capacities of farmers in the villages. Following a series of training on production and entrepreneurship skills development that will be given to promoters and then to farmers, it is expected that production and hence income to the farmers will increase to at least 10% in each region.
Mviwata national will carry out overall coordination and learning activities:
Regional planning workshops.
Capacity assessment of the MLN.
Training in leadership, planning reporting and monitoring to MLN.
training on entrepreneurship development for MLN.
promotion and expansion of market information systems.
dissemination of best practices.
reflection meetings on institutional and financial management.
capacity strengthening for service delivery.