The Role of Civil Society Organizations on Land Issues in

Tanzania

By Justin Aldo Mdemu

The National Council of NGOs

Curtain raiser

It’s my pleasure to welcome you all in this brief presentation on the role of CSOs on Land issues in Tanzania. I suppose that every one understands at least in brief the important of this discussion.The following bullets tries to remind us on why are we here today

Land is increasingly becoming a scarce resource over time.The value of land has been rising uncontrollably over time

Some of the factors being;-o Increase in population (The population growth in Tanzania is estimated to

be 2.8% per annum while the land resource remain fixed). According to the 2002 population census the population was 34.4 million people and the 2008 population estimates is about 38.7 million people

o Fuel crisis has also exacerbated the demand for land as agro fuels is being seen as compliment to the fossil fuels which is progressively becoming scarce over time.

Total land area for Tanzania

Total Land area for Tanzania

39Mha

44.4Mha

10.8Mha

No Agric Potential

Potentially Available

for Agric In use for crop

Production

Agro fuels in Tanzania at Glance

Agro fuels/bio fuels =Agriculture fuels

Biofuels Task Force was established in April 2006 to promote development of the sector and develop legislation to stimulate use of biofuels

Goal of the task force:- Designing biofuels policies and regulations suitable for Tanzanian conditions, Bioenergy Partnership, Promoting applied research and development

Targeting Crops for bio-fuels production

Starch crops such as grains, maize and tubers like cassava

Sugar plants such as sugarcane Cellulose plants (agriculture residues) Oil seed crops (like Jatropha, Oil palm)

Bio diesel production to meet the requirement

Land requirements (ha) for B20 blend

Oilseed crop 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010

Oil Palm 19,625 20,606 21637 22,719 23,851 25,053

Jatropha 61,715 64,800 68,040 71,442 75,004 78,782

Ethanol production to meet the requirement

Land Investors in Tanzania (Land scramblers in Tanzania )

D1 oils – UK company investing on Jatropha and sunflower oils PROKON – A German company investing on Jatropha. Has

began a 10000 hectares of Jatropha out grower programme in Mpanda

Diligent Energy Systems – A Dutch company promoting Jatropha in Engaruka, Babati, Chalinze, Pangani and Singida

Sun Biofuels – plan to plant 18,000 hectares of Jatropha in Lindi

US – UK group, a Malaysian group and a US based venture fund are exploring more than 100,000hectares of Palm Oil production.

Kakute, TaTedo, FELISA – Local organisations that are also promoting biofuels in Tanzania

Land Investors in Tanzania (Land scramblers in Tanzania )

Investors Oil is important2-4%

PeasantsWe need food75-85%

Results?????????????????????????????????????

My Hypothesis from the above statistics

Land that is claimed to be underutilized will be converted into farmland for crop production in the near future

Basis– 2.8 to 3.4 Population increase per

annum – Figures for ethanol and bio diesel

requirements above

Please??????? don’t note this

In my opinion, these companies are talking of domestic energy security in order to put in favourable policies, but really this will open the doors to export focused companies taking over and massive amount of land being required to meet energy deeds of developed world

Salient land issues in Tanzania (basis for CSOs engagement)

General Issues: Increased population of people and animals. This means that Land available for

use decreased and consequently conflicts ensued.– The current loliondo issue????– Kilimanjaro land issues????

Increased demand for Land use led to degradation of environment. The bio/agro fuel issues??? Increased awareness about value of Land led to Land conflicts in both Urban

and Rural areas. Changes in the mode of Land ownership from a clan based system to an

individual system brought about by introduction of Land markets, this applied particularly in areas where Land is suitable for agriculture.

The existence of laws that prohibited certain traditional Land ownership systems such as Nyarubanja enfranchisement Act 1968.

Land issues General Cont…..

The villagisation programme 1971 – 1976. The introduction of planned villages necessarily

affected the clan system. Court of Appeal decisions which recognized the

planned villages and provided the manner in which problems of clan ownership can be handled.

The Village Act No. 22 of 1992, which legalized ownership of Land granted to people during the implementation of the villagisation programme.

Bio fuels

Biofuels will increase pressure on Tanzania food supplies and further erode food sovereignty Tanzania’s agriculture is predominantly rain-fed. With increasing occurrence of drought the govt has been

forced to ask for food aid to reduce the food shortage Converting the main sites identified as suitable for growing

sugarcane to produce ethanol, land area devoted for food production will be reduced, so eroding local food security and sovereignty and causing shortages

Competition for land

Several investors have shown interest to invest on biofuels in the country.

According to Tanzania Investment Centre a Swedish company is looking for 400,000h of land for sugarcane production. Wami basin has been identified

About 1000 small scale rice farmers could be evicted if the project go through

Competition for land cont….

In Ruipa valley, plans are underway to convert the basin into sugarcane plantation.

Over 1000 small scale rice farmers could be affected

Promotion of Jatropha in the so called degraded land in Engaruka and Manyara and rice production in Usangu basin is forcing out the pastoralists out of their land

Conflict over use of water

Areas identified suitable for biofuels production are adjacent to rivers which small scale farmers depend on. Large scale biofuels production will divert most of the water into their plantation, hence depriving small scale farmers access to water.

E.g. During peak growing period sugarcane can require up to 10mm of rain equivalent water per day to meet the crop evapotranspiration requirements.

In Usangu basin, 1000 farmers were evicted and the river which is supplying water to their farms was diverted to an investors farm

Human rights violation

Human rights abuses have been reported from sugar cane plantation and others

Loliondo crisis

Hadzabe???

Others

The incidents include very poor working conditions and low wages and health crises due to use of agrochemicals

Environmental pollution

Burning the sugarcane pre harvesting is done to get rid of dry leafs and biomass not needed in the production. The soot and other emission from the burning is probably an environmental problem.

Effluent from biofuels processing industries once established if not properly treated could pollute the environment

Territorial impacts

The farming communities in the identified biofuels potential areas have already established their territories. It is these territories that they have been practicing small-scale agriculture, their culture and traditions since time immemorial.

Large-scale biofuels introduction will force these communities out of their territories

Will plunge them into economic and cultural exploitation Will undermine their culture, pride, dignity, spirituality, and their

ability to remain self-sufficient through wise use of natural resources (land)

Impacts on biodiversity

Monoculture: For large scale biofuels production monocultures of energy-efficient crops (sugar cane, oil palm) may be preferred over crop rotations, which may result in the simplification of agro-ecosystems associated with a decrease in crop and farm biodiversity

GM crops:could result in cross-pollination of wild relatives, thereby affecting biodiversity

Invasive species: Jatropha

Impact on general livelihood

Large-scale, export-oriented production of biofuels in Tanzania would require large-scale monocultures of trees, sugarcane, maize and oil palm

These monocultures will cause rural depopulation and deforestation in Tanzania

The rapidly increasing demand for these crops as a source of biofuels will lead to staggering food prices and causing hunger, malnutrition and impoverishment amongst the poorest rural communities, the destruction of the traditions, cultures, languages and spiritual values of indigenous peoples and rural communities

What are the CSOs in Tanzania???????

Civil Society is sometimes called the Third Sector. The first sector is the state (roughly equivalent to government) and the second is the private sector (local, national and international businesses). Each of the three sectors has its own interests and agendas.

If any one sector becomes too powerful then the other two sectors will suffer. For example, when the state became all-powerful under communism, the private sector and the people suffered as a result. The private sector is arguably too powerful under free market capitalism and results in the rich getting richer while the poor get poorer - and governments do what big business tells them to do.

Civil Society has an important role to play in advocating for a socially just balance between crippling state control and unscrupulous free markets.

Civil Society covers a wide range of organized groupings. They occupy the public space between the state and individual people. They are normally interest groups with different degrees of accountability to their membership. They include:

The three pillars

CSOs is the Third Sector

The State

Private Sector

Civil Society

CSOs includes:-

NGOs – national and international Religious organisations Professional associations Trade Unions Co-operatives Voluntary and self-help groups Organisations of socially excluded groups Political parties The Media Community-based organisations (CBOs) Legal and Human rights groups Research Organisations

CSOs agendas:

Civil Society organizations have a wide range of agendas:-

Eg, Some are deliberately pro-poor while some take a rights-based approach to empowerment, service delivery and lobbying and advocacy.

Why CSOs???

CSOs are increasingly being recognized by governments, the lending agencies and the donor community as:

– potent forces for social and economic development– important partners in nation building and national

development– valuable forces in promoting the qualitative and

quantitative development of democracy and– important contributors to GDP

CSOs are important in Tanzania because despite of the 48 years of our independence the economic situation of the country is still not promising.

(We are still poor)

Indicators for our poverty

According to UNDP’s Human Development Report 2006, about 58% of the 37 million people in Tanzania live on less than one dollar per day. More over Tanzania is ranked 162 among 177 countries in the UNDPs Human Development Index. The report also shows that under nourishment has been on the rising trend, at the beginning of 1990’s about 37% of Tanzania population were malnourished and the trend rose tremendously to 44% in just 10 years. The current life expectancy is about 48 years and the infant mortality rate is 115 of 1000 births.

History of CSOs

The origin of Modern Civil Society in Tanzania can be traced back to the beginning of the British rule in 1920’s.The Tanganyika Territory African Civil Servants Association was established in 1922 to safeguard the welfare of Native Civil Servants, Tanganyika African Association was established in 1929 to promote sports and cultural activities and in 1954 TAA was reformed to Tanganyika African National Union (TANU) which eventually became a central actor in leading Tanzania (Mainland) to independence in 1961.

After multiparty election in 1965 the Constitution was changed, it allowed the establishment of one party system as a result political power was concentrated on one party only (TANU) and the President himself.

The state also controlled the legal system which used to control and coerce the citizens rather than to guarantee right for them. The political environment was so restrictive to non-governmental associations as a result it was virtually impossible for Civil Societies to organise independently, only religious groups, charity organisations and relief foundations were allowed because their activities were not considered political.

Civil Society Organisation in Tanzania started thriving in 1980 when funding for CSO increased tremendously as a result of privatisation and rapid down sizing of the public sector that was implemented under the structural adjustment programmes of the IMF and World Bank.

The funding to CSOs increased in that time because foreign donors funding strategies emphasized the strengthening of the “Third Sector” instead of state institutions which were seen as in efficient and corrupt.

Histoy of CSOs cont….

Since then the civil societies and government existed as competitors instead of stakeholders. Until the beginning of multiparty democracy in 1990s, Civil Society Organisations started been seen by the state as important stakeholder in community development.

Since then the number of CSOs increased tremendously. Recently it is estimate that about 4000 to 8000 CSOs exists in Tanzania.

The diversity of main actors among Civil Society actors in Tanzania vary greatly. The sector varies from self help groups to international agencies. It also varies from voluntarily groups to well established organisation with paid employees. A major part of CSOs in Tanzania consists of informal groups and Small Community Based Organisations (CBOs), Professional Associations and Trade Union as well as faith based organizations.

CSOs are the main actors on publicity in the Medias, engagement in policy formulation processes, lobbying and advocacy for change in laws and policies, Service provision and general development actions in rural and urban setting. CSOs also play a central role in civic education.

For sustainability purposes and as per National CSOs guidelines, International NGOs are supposed to be capacity builders of Local Civil Societies Organisations in Tanzania. (The reality is not yet defined????????????????????????????????????)

Role of CSOs

Civil Society Organizations in Tanzania have many roles to play, particularly in addressing various salient land issues in Tanzania as itemized above.

Due to diversity of issues CSOs they are required to operate at all levels i.e. National, Regional, District, Ward and village levels and to categorize issues to be dealt with based on the needs and importance;

Roles of CSOs continued

Service provision Mapping and provision of customary land certificates (Mkurabita)

Property and Business formalization program (TAGROSODE Iringa…..)

Education on various land issues– Ownership– Land laws and policies– Process of formation of Land laws and policies (Haki ardhi……..)

Legal aid support (LHRC,NOLA,TAMWA…..)Lobbying and advocacy

– For favorable/good policies – Equity/equality– Against marginalization/discriminatory actions……(FEMACT, TGNP, POLICY FORUM)

Role of CSOs in Brief

The role of CSOs is basically in the category of lobbying and advocacy for better land policies, protecting the rights of the disadvantaged communities, groups, families and individuals. Educating people to know their rights and in sensitizing better utilization of land resources for sustainability and promoting user friendly technologies and practices in order to conserve our environment.

A words of thanks for your attentive listening

Twilumba sana Merci boku Nyongise hilo Mulakose chane Asante sana Imana yi vafuvule Obligado Thanks a lot Chala mnunu …………………