Description

The adverse effects of climate change in Tanzania include increased temperature and rainfall variability, crop yield decline, reduced water volumes in water bodies such as rivers and lakes, increased pest and disease incidence due to increased temperatures, and salt water intrusion. Crop yields decline due to variability in rainfall and the length of the growing season have been noted in semiarid areas of central Tanzania. Degradation of land and forest resources due to poor farming practices, unsustainable wood harvesting and livestock grazing, aggravate the impacts of climate variability on crop production and rural livelihoods in this region. Despite major efforts to improve households’ food security and living conditions, a large proportion of the Tanzanian population lives in extreme poverty, in particular in rural areas, making it highly vulnerable to climate change. In view of these high levels of vulnerabilities paired with the ever-increasing climatic changes Tanzanian farmers are facing, climate change adaptation strategies are key to ensure farmers are equipped to deal with the projected impacts while building productive and resilient livelihoods.

The SCARF-project addresses the root-causes of non-adoption of good agricultural practices. Ensuring long-term, autonomous implementation of those good agricultural practices is key for climate change adaptation. Two case study regions are selected, Morogoro and Dodoma, which together account for 70-80 % of all farming systems present in Tanzania.