| Overview : The Government of the United Republic of Tanzania has set industrialization as a key goal in a bid to attain middle-income status by 2025. The agricultural sector is expected to be the driver of economic growth and create more jobs for the Tanzanians (National Five-year Development Plan 2016/17-2020/21). Indeed, in a country where an estimated one million Tanzanians enter the job market every year (World Bank 2016) and a significant proportion of the population lives in rural areas (70.4%, Population and Housing Census 2012), the agricultural sector has the potential to expand and provide better livelihoods for the Tanzanian people. This would also contribute to efforts to lift many Tanzanians out of poverty. In 2012 about 28.2% of the population lived below the poverty line with significant inequalities between rural and urban areas and with more women than men living in poverty (World Bank 2014). Poverty is still a big challenge even in a region like Kilimanjaro which has relatively lower number population living below the basic needs poverty line. There is big variation between districts. According to “Region and District Poverty Estimates for Tanzania, 2012”, Same district has significantly high number 22.6 per cent of the population living below the basic needs poverty line. Unlike other districts in Kilimanjaro region, a big portion of the district is semi-arid with sparse and unreliable rainfall pattern. In comparison districts in Mtwara region with an exception of Mtwara Municipality, have high percentages of the population below the basic needs poverty line ranging from 26.3 per cent in Mtwara district to 50.7 per cent in Nanyumbu district. This is despite having a relatively good arable agricultural land. In both cases, in Same and Mtwara districts, women are the one most engaged in agriculture and agriculture related off-farm activities as main sources of their livelihoods and income. In Same district women cultivate ginger and onions while in Mtwara district majority of women are engaged in traditional chicken rearing and sesame cultivation. The Project will be aligned with the priorities set out in the National Five Year Development Plan II 2016/17-2020/2021 to develop the skills of the youth through promoting employable skills particularly for women in the two districts. The project will contribute towards UNDAP II thematic area of Inclusive Growth, National Five Year Development Plan II 2016/17-2020/2021, The Tanzania Development Vision 2025, Global Sustainable Development Goals. Through the Country Programme Document(CPD) for the United Republic of Tanzania (2016-2021), UNDP will continue to work with the Government towards ensuring that poor rural women and unemployed youth have sustainable livelihoods, decent employment and access to social protection, through support to analytical, policy-oriented research and capacity-building efforts aimed at promoting a more diversified economy and reducing poverty and inequalities in urban and rural areas. |
