Obare used traditional farming methods—as many farmers in Tanzania do—to plant untreated seeds in sunken beds at random distances apart. These practices, along with the improper use of fertilizers and pesticides, reduce yields, leaving little for sale.
Standing tall in a pink Morogoro Nursing College uniform, it is hard to believe that Laudekia Nyamanda was ever one of these girls. Her current status is even more improbable because, by the age of 15, she was a single mother, cast out by her family due to the stigma of teenage pregnancy. With an infant, scraps of an education and no community support, Nyamanda’s future promised poverty, not nursing college.
Medicine figured prominently in Neema Shosho’s family growing up in Dodoma, Tanzania. Her mother was a nurse and her brother, a doctor. When she was a young girl, family talk about food and nutrition was just that—talk. Now, Shosho is as much a participant in the conversations as the rest of her family.
In the minds of many young Tanzanians aged 18 to 35, farming does not offer the economic opportunities or the attractive lifestyle many aspire to achieve. This sentiment is best encapsulated in the lyrics of the popular post-World War I song, “How Ya Gonna Keep ‘Em Down on the Farm (After They’ve Seen Paree?).”
Tanzanian smallholder rice farmers often use seeds saved from past seasons to plant their fields. Since these indigenous seeds are typically recycled several times, most have reduced viability or have developed susceptibilities to disease. The reliance of farmers on weak and damaged seed results in low yields and constrains agricultural development. Access to improved seed can help solve these problems, leading to agricultural productivity and higher profits.
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