Clever Farmer in Tanzania
With support from Biovision, a practical guide for smallholder families is published in Tanzania. The name of the magazine: Clever Farmer.
Initial situation: Bridging science and practice
The Mkulima Mbunifu (Clever Farmer) magazine is written in Swahili and is published bimonthly in five regions of Tanzania (Arusha, Kilimanjaro, Tanga, Singida, and Manyara). This guide for smallholder families facilitates continuous and targeted knowledge and experience exchange between practical farming and science.
Through the website, SMS, or WhatsApp, readers can submit questions and feedback. This efficient feedback system and the close collaboration with local stakeholders ensure that the magazine truly addresses the needs of smallholder families.
Goals: Spreading agroecological knowledge
75,000 farmers use Clever Farmer to learn about sustainable farming practices, and around 25,000 of them actively implement these methods.
At a glance
Project name:
Clever farmer
Beneficiaries: Tanzania
Project budget in CHF :
649588
Participants: Agricultural advisors to the government Employees of the local administration Gardeners on the outskirts of the city Gärtnerinnen und Gärtner am Stadtrand Landwirtschaftsberatende der Regierung Mitarbeitende der Lokalverwaltung Smallholder farmers
Project Officer:
Project phase: 2023-2026
Partner organizations:
Biovision Africa Trust, BvAT
Sustainable Agriculture Tanzania, SAT
The project addresses the following SDGs from UN Agenda 2030:
Region
Impact to date: Effective dissemination of knowledge
Each year, Clever Farmer publishes six issues with a total circulation of 15,000 copies. This means the magazine reaches an average of 75,000 people per issue (five readers per copy). According to a 2022 survey, 96% of readers apply agroecological practices. Younger farmers primarily access the Clever Farmer website and Facebook page. By the end of 2022, the Facebook page had around 10,000 followers, and the website had been visited by approximately 30,000 people.
Next steps: Strengthening agroecological communication
The magazine will continue to spread agroecological knowledge. Joint communication plans are being developed with district officials to promote agroecology and further strengthen the knowledge of agricultural advisors. The goal remains for Clever Farmer to become the magazine for smallholder farmers in Tanzania.
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