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2021_Tanzania_Growing is Learning
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Resource ID
77971
Access
Open
Contributed by
John Hewat
Uploading member
CARE Australia
Consent form provided?
Yes
Region
Central and East Africa
Image size
6240x4160
Country
Tanzania
Theme
Food security and nutrition, Women’s economic empowerment, Health
Camera make / model
Canon EOS 6D Mark II
Additional Keywords
Tulia Myovela
Credit
Vanessa Mwingira/CARE
Copyright
© Vanessa Mwingira/CARE
Date Image Taken
18 February 21
Caption
Tulia Myovela is a 45 yr old farmer married to Mathius (50), they have three children who currently stay with them. Tulia joined the program in 2017 and she has greatly benefited from the project. She is happy that her husband has received education on gender equality and division of work in the family. Her household is a peaceful one because of it.
Tulia’s story in her own words:
My husband and I are maize farmers. When the Growing is Learning project came, we were very thankful because we didn’t know anything about planting soya. We didn’t know that it was meant for porridge or food. It was foreign to us.
Even when we were told to go to the meeting groups, my husband didn’t want me to go. I was the one insisting on going. But after being educated, my husband has great respect for the project.
I also took the soya and we planted it in our field. The children love having it in the morning, they say it’s tasty and you don’t get hungry quickly after having it.
Before this project we only planted maize. But with Growing is Learning we started learning about other things. They taught us that with soya, you can make a lot of things like porridge and snacks like mandazi. I’ve been in this project since 2017. We were in farming classes where the people from CARE came and taught us different things.
My children were weak, they only drank maize porridge which is not very nutritious compared to soya. Now that I have joined the project, I started making soya porridge and their health is better. We all became chubby from eating soya ( she began laughing).
My husband used to be very stubborn so I reported him to the CARE project staff because every day was a tug-of-war at home and I didn’t like it. So they came and educated him. And ever since then, if I leave home, maybe because of the seminars or group meet ups, I come back home and find he has already washed the children’s clothes, cooked and prepared for the kids. So we indeed got education on gender equality. Before I didn’t know about it at all.
We are so happy that this project is here. It even brought a little trust into the household. In the past for example if I left home to run some errands, when I came back, I would find the children the way they were with their unwashed uniforms. That meant I had to deal with the washing. But ever since the project, honestly, we have learnt a lot about division of work at home. We are helping each other even better. Even if I say I am going to a group meeting and I might sleep there (she began to laugh at the joke) he says ‘Just go, I know what to do when you are gone’.
Before when we planted maize together, it was him that went and sold the harvest. I had no idea how much he made from the harvest, nor how he used the money. He never gave me money at all. It was only a few times that he brought soap or some small groceries for cooking and that’s all. But I would never see the money. If I asked him about it, he would ask me why I needed to know. But after getting the education from Growing is Learning, I instruct him. Like in the shamba darasa, we planted soya together and got a big harvest. We sold it and it helped with school requirements for the children.
I used to make and sell alcohol. That used to be a way for me to get money before joining the project. That’s how I would buy the children’s books and uniform.
I had no knowledge about saving and borrowing before Growing is Learning; I didn’t even know where to borrow money from. Now I do know about it. For instance when we gather around every Sunday, we collect money for that week which might be 400,000 - 500,000Tsh. After collecting we lend each other all the money that we collected. So if I say I will borrow 50,000Tsh or 30,000Tsh, I take it and use the money to help me with my daily life. So let’s assume I have taken 50,000Tsh, after a month I have to return with interest. That means I have to return 55,000Tsh.
The advantage of this system of saving and borrowing in the community is that someone can borrow money that can help them run their day to day activities. For example, I sell alcohol, with the money that I borrowed, I am able to purchase ingredients needed in making local alcohol. In a month, I am able to cook twice the local alcohol. It’s better getting money from the VSLA than from an individual because they might tell the whole community that you didn’t pay back.
I am in a VSLA. I have borrowed five times from the VSLA already. I used some money to buy cement for the foundation of my new house; I sent some money to the school; there are always contributions to the school, and the rest I invested in my small business.
With the little money I got from my business, I would buy the basic things needed at home. I would make sure that the children have uniforms and books, and that they have pocket money too. Now that I have sufficient knowledge about saving and borrowing, I would want to support my children’s studies, I would send the money to school and build another house because the one we live in is small, I already started making preparations to build the house.
Before joining the project, I was very lost. I didn’t have the proper knowledge. This project has opened a lot of doors for us. It has given my family and community new hope that things are going to be better.
Before when my children went to school, they didn’t have socks, shoes or bags. They used to go to school with books in their hands, and their uniforms were shabby. We couldn’t even afford sweaters. But now it has all changed, they go to school looking clean, with sweaters.
We used to eat two meals a day before the project. We only eat in the afternoon and evening. But now with the help and education from CARE, I make soya porridge in the morning too. So now we eat three meals a day.
I have learnt a lot from Growing is Learning. Farming soya, I learnt about manure/fertilizer, I learnt about selling maize and soya. I learnt about the issues of gender equality, a woman’s right to land ownership. My husband even gave me my own land.
My hopes and dreams for the future are to get electricity in my house, buy new furniture for the house and most importantly, build a bigger house.
I am extremely thankful to the people who contributed to this project. I would love for them to continue teaching us. In my part I didn’t know a lot of things. My mind is now expanded. They have opened doors for us and for that, I say thank you!
Interviewed by Vanessa Mwingira in Iringa on 18 Feb 2021.
Project information:
In Tanzania, more than 34% of children under five experience stunted growth as a result of chronic malnutrition. Most families eat just one meal per day, and Tanzanian women are often anaemic.
The Growing is Learning project supports women who are farmers to increase their productivity, income and their family’s nutrition.
Farmers learn new skills to improve their existing crop yields, such as organic fertiliser production and seed multiplication.
This project supports women to enter the profitable soy market by training them in production, and helping them link into the local market to sell their supply and earn an income.
Soy is a highly suitable crop for the region due to its nutritious benefits, resilience to drought and climate change and soil enhancing qualities. Importantly, soy is high in protein and excellent for treating malnutrition so it makes a great addition to family diets.
Marker lat / long: -6, 35 (WGS84)
Public: 2021_Tanzania_Growing is Learning