INVITATION FOR BIDS TO PROVIDE SHORT TERM CONSULTANCY SERVICES TO STRENGTHEN CAPACITY OF BUHINGU WARD FARMERS’ FEDERATION TO SUSTAIN FARMERS OPERATIONS AND ENHANCE CONSERVATION SMART AGRICULTURE
1.0 Background
The Nature Conservancy (TNC) and Pathfinder International (Pl) in Tanzania are jointly implementing an. integrated Program known as Tuungane which addresses Population, Health and Environment (PHE). Agriculture which forms the main livelihood activity on the terrestrial environment has been blamed for the increasing siltation of Lake Tanganyika through unsustainable farming practices. To reduce the soil sediments that have adverse effect to the lake fisheries productivity, Tuungane program aims at supporting smallholder farmers in the Greater Mahale Ecosystem (GME) in improving their agricultural
practices through adoption of conservation agriculture/Climate Smart Agriculture.
For more than 5 years, Tuungane program has been ‘ conducting trainings on Conservation Smart Agriculture. Some of the outcomes of the trainings include an average improvement in maize yields by 35% and reduction of the number of farmers farming close to Lake Tanganyika, rivers by 40%, and hence reducing the quantities of sediments directly entering the water bodies. Because farmers are getting more crop yields per unit area than it was before ‘ they received the trainings, some of their farms have been left to fallow for 2 to 4 years. This measure has allowed the fallowed farmland to undergo natural regeneration which reverses climate change by rebuilding soil organic matter and restoring degraded soil biodiversity.
To make farmers organized, Tuungane program facilitated the formation of 4 farmers’ groups in Buhingu ward which joined together into a ward level federation (Jumuia ya Wakulima Kata ya Buhingu – JUWAKABU). The program aims at strengthening the capacity of the federation in 5 strategic aspects (developing a strategy for sustainable financial resources mobilization; networking with Collaborative Fisheries Management Areas (CFMAs), technical and business services providers, mandating the adoption of Conservation Smart Agriculture for all its members; organizing its members for collective selling of crops to major buyers; and forming more groups of farmers and strengthening their capacities to operate). During the first phase, members of the farmers’ federation were trained in the following:
i) Development of a participatory constitution detailing groups’ functions, good governance, group’s dos & don’t with due penalties, conflicts and conflicts’ resolutions, and continuous capacity building. }
ii) Community based financial services through COCOBA, SACCOS, etc.
iii) Business/commercial farming, forecasting, planning, budgeting, keeping farm records, calculating profit and loss.
iv) Agricultural marketing and market access.
v) Appropriate use of agricultural inputs.
vi} Contract farming and business agreements. Tuungane program is therefore seeking to engage a consultant with skills and experience to strengthen capacity of the farmers’ federation so that it can be able to sustain farmer’s operations and enhance Conservation Smart Agriculture in Buhingu ward.
2. Consultancy Services The following is the list of needed consultancy services:
i) Build capacity of the farmers’ federation to develop a strategy for sustainable financial resources mobilization.
ii) Strengthen capacity of the federation to network with Collaborative Fisheries Management Areas (CFMAs), technical and business services providers.
iii) Strengthen capacity of the federation to mandate the adoption of Conservation Smart Agriculture for all its members.
iv) Strengthen capacity of the federation to organize its members for collective selling of crops to major buyers.
v) Build capacity of the federation to form more groups of farmers and strengthen their capacities to operate.
3.0 Eligibility Criteria
Eligible consultants should possess the following
minimum qualifications:
- Minimum of Bachelor of Science in Agriculture, B.A. in Community Development, or equivalent.
- Have an experience of at least 3 years in training farmers’ groups and associations and provision of agricultural extension services (attach list of completed similar assignments and CV of key personnel).
4.0 Application procedures
Interested organizations or individuals with technical skills and appropriate experiences on the above-mentioned assignment are warmly welcome to submit their electronic Technical Proposals which include a well Itemized Financial Budget and activity time schedule on or before
15TH December 2021 by email to: [email protected]. Also attach legal business documents as per Government requirements (License, registration, and TIN/VAT number).
Please, note that all application received after the deadline will not be honored.
