Tanzania is building food security and improving nutrition with USAID support

USAID

Agriculture and Food Security

Tanzania is a focus country under Feed the Future—the U.S. Government’s global hunger and food security initiative—under which USAID investments focus on Tanzania’s Southern Agricultural Growth Corridor, as well as specific products such as rice, maize, and horticulture. This is complemented by the construction of improved roads and irrigation, policy initiatives that enable agricultural growth, research activities that support long-term agricultural development, and efforts to reduce undernutrition.  

Democracy, Human Rights, and Governance

Efforts to strengthen democratic governance are integrated throughout the country portfolio to increase principles of democracy and good governance, especially in the areas of health, natural resource management, and among civil society organizations. USAID compliments this assistance through support to the Government of Tanzania’s oversight and accountability institutions. USAID has also worked to improve civic and voter education, strengthen the electoral process, improve the effectiveness of female parliamentarians, and help journalists and editors report in an accurate, conflict-sensitive manner.

Economic Growth and Trade

USAID/Tanzania takes a multifaceted approach to building inclusive, broad-based economic growth that includes improving agricultural productivity, spurring investment in the energy sector, preserving natural resources and biodiversity, and filling the unmet need for family planning services. Furthermore, by ensuring women and youth are able to take advantage of opportunities in these sectors, these efforts work toward reducing extreme poverty and sustaining economic growth well into the future.    

Education                          

Tusome Pamoja (Let’s Read Together) is USAID’s flagship education activity in Tanzania and aims to improve early grade learning outcomes for 1.4 million primary school children. In addition to increasing the availability and use of quality learning materials, Tusome Pamoja will improve teacher skills and behaviors, as well as enhance parental and community support of education in more than 3,000 primary schools. To build on this, annual reading and math assessments will measure gains in learning in order to help primary schools adopt appropriate best practices.  

Energy

During his trip to Africa in 2013, President Obama announced Power Africa, a new initiative to double access to power in sub-Saharan Africa. Through this initiative, the U.S. Government is supporting the Government of Tanzania’s efforts to advance private sector energy transactions and help governments adopt and implement the policy and regulatory reforms necessary to attract private sector investment in the energy and power sectors.

Environment and Global Climate Change

USAID partners with Tanzanians to build sustainable livelihoods and support natural resource management by implementing national environmental policies and supporting community-based conservation. Key objectives of U.S Government assistance include: sustaining critical wildlife habitats, reversing land degradation, restoring watersheds, and improving community livelihoods through conservation enterprises. Activities also target sustainable agriculture and agroforestry, trade, and private sector initiatives.

Gender and Youth

In order to sustainably reduce extreme poverty, build healthy communities, and promote inclusive growth, Tanzanian women and youth must have greater access to and control of resources, opportunities, and decision-making power. As a key focus of USAID’s strategy in Tanzania, activities work to strengthen the national enabling environment for women and youth, promote women’s equality and youth inclusion at the local government and community levels, and ensure Tanzanian women and youth are healthier and more productive. Tanzania is also one of two initial priority countries under Let Girls Learn, a whole-of-government initiative to improve enrollment and retention in educational programs for female adolescents.

Global Health

U.S. Government programming in Tanzania focuses on HIV/AIDS, malaria, tuberculosis, maternal, newborn, and child health, nutrition, and family planning and reproductive health. In order to improve the quality, availability, and use of preventive and curative health services, U.S. Government-supported programs in Tanzania focus on three interconnected areas: quality integrated services, health systems strengthening, and healthy behaviors. These contributions support the Government of Tanzania’s strategies for improving the health of citizens and fulfilling the goals laid out in the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals.

Water

Tanzania’s health, economy, and food security depend on sustainably managed water resources. In critically threatened watersheds, USAID supports improved management of water resources, better service access, climate change adaptation, and biodiversity conservation. USAID works with partners from the Government of Tanzania, the private sector, civil society, and communities to improve the delivery of water services and enhance watershed management.

Working in Crisis and Conflict

Tanzania, like other countries in the region, faces a range of natural disasters, including drought, floods, and seismic events. Factors such as climate variability, population growth, and slow economic development compound risks to populations by increasing their vulnerability to disasters. USAID works with the government and local organizations to better prepare for crises through risk mitigation, which includes a regional disaster risk reduction strategy and activities to increase the resilience of the population to cope with future shocks while continuing to meet the immediate needs of vulnerable populations.