Female Masai Empowerment In Tanzania

Projects

Female empowerment in Tanzania

We plant trees in Tanzania to give Maasai women communities the tools to combat desertification and gain economic independence.

WHERE

Tanzania – Arusha

MAIN THREATS

Desertification, depleting hydrological resources, soil erosion, tensions and conflicts

TREES PLANTED

Acacia, Avocado, Cedrela, Croton, Jakaranda, Olea and 8 more

BENEFICIARIES

Groups of Maasai women

Discover the platform

Tanzania

CONTEXT

On eroded soils, society erodes too.

Deforestation is a significant problem in Tanzania: there has been an estimated annual loss of about 403,000 hectares of forest between 2010 and 2020. Forests in Tanzania cover 35% of the land area, but the deforestation rate is approaching 1.5% per year.

The main causes of deforestation include large-scale agriculture, rural sprawl, illegal logging and charcoal production. Soil becomes depleted and unsuitable for life, and it slowly turns into desert. Desertification makes soils unproductive. This creates food instability and forces people to migrate in search of better land. While soil erosion destroys roads, divides fields, increases isolation and endangers livestock, it also creates tensions and conflicts among people. In Tanzania, we develop our reforestation project in collaboration with our local partner WAEV: our aim is to empower Maasai families by equipping them with the tools to protect their land from soil erosion.

Tools to defend the land.

Reforestation in Tanzania means giving the Maasai communities the necessary tools to resist the climate crisis and its effects on agriculture, the area’s main source of livelihood.

The region of Arusha is inhabited mainly by rural Maasai communities who survive on agriculture and animal husbandry. They currently have no mechanisms to adapt to climate change. New trees in this region can defend the soil, by keeping it productive and regulating the local water cycles. Reforestation means giving the Maasai families we work with the tools to thrive, by defending their land from soil erosion.

Empowered women are free women.

Reforestation in Tanzania is a tool of empowerment for women. Maasai women do not usually participate in the local economies, at least not with a leading role. They lack the tools to cultivate their own land. In a context of progressive desertification, this makes them even more vulnerable.

The loss of forests and the decreased fertility of the soil can negatively affect food security and access to clean water for all communities in Tanzania. Women, who are traditionally responsible for water supply, are the most affected population. We provide trees to Maasai women in the Arusha region and welcome them in training courses to learn how to grow these new tools of empowerment. Trees helps them create food autonomy and opportunities to develop their role in society.

Let’s curb desertification.

In Tanzania, we are seeing a gradual depletion of the soil due to a loss of the organic substances that make it suitable for life. In such an area of the planet it means only one thing: desertification.

The process of desertification is the progressive loss of soil fertility: nutrients composed of carbon and sugar are depleted. The soil dies, thus turning into desert. This process implies the loss of biodiversity, cultivable land, forestry, and local production activities. Creating balanced agroforestry systems helps preserving the soil and restore biodiversity and it is currently the most effective solution to contrast desertification.