Browsing by Author "Lazaro, E. A."

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Farmer field schools as a springboard for enhanced uptake of farmer field schools as a springboard for enhanced uptake of new agricultural technologies: lessons for Tanzania
(Tanzania Journal of Agricultural Sciences) Mvena, Z. S. K.; Mattee, A. Z.; Wambura, R. M.; Mwaseba, D. L.; Lazaro, E. A.; Kiranga, E. D.; Kilave, D. M.
Farmer field schools as a springboard for enhanced uptake of farmer field schools as a springboard for enhanced uptake of new agricultural technologies: lessons for Tanzania
(Tanzania Journal of Agricultural Sciences, 2010) Mvena, Z. S. K.; Mattee, A. Z.; Wambura, R. M.; Mwaseba, D. L.; Lazaro, E. A.; Kiranga, E. D.; Kilave, D. M.
The uptake of proven agricultural technologies in less developed countries has not been very impressive over the years. This is in spite of the different methods used to disseminate these technologies, including the focal approach, the improvement approach, the transformation approach and others. With the collapse of the relatively expensive transformation approach in the late 1960s, more practical (in terms of resources and clientele characteristics) approaches, namely, the persuasive and dialogical models were adopted. Thereafter the World Bank introduced the Training and Visit system which has been in use at different periods in Tanzania and at different levels of resource commitment. The latest approach in enhancing the uptake of agricultural technologies is through the Farmer Field Schools that have only a short history in Tanzania.This paper reviews the literature on Farmer Field Schools, first giving a brief description of the nature of Farmer Field Schools. This is then followed by experiences from selected countries in terms of: the purpose of introducing the FFS, the process used in implementing the FFS approach, impact of the FFS approach, conclusions on the effectiveness of FFS in promoting the uptake of agricultural technologies, and finally the lessons learned. This discussion is then followed by a brief presentation of the history of FFS in Tanzania. The paper then makes an assessment of the effectiveness of the approach in the uptake of agricultural technologies and the challenges it faces. The paper concludes by underscoring the importance of FFS, offers some recommendations including the creation of more awareness on FFS and monitoring how FFS graduates sustain the FFS spirit. Finally, the paper gives a critical evaluation of the FFS approach vis-à-vis other approaches in use today
Growing tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum L.) in nematode infested soil and the pest implications in poorly managed post-harvested fields during the dry season in Tanzania
Bagarama, F. M.; Mrema, E. J.; Lazaro, E. A.
Sustainability standards and coffee exports from Tanzania
(DIIS · DANISH INSTITUTE FOR INTERNATIONAL STUDIES) Lazaro, E. A.; Makindara, J.; Kilima, T. M.
Sustainability standards and coffee exports from Tanzania
(DIIS · DANISH INSTITUTE FOR INTERNATIONAL STUDIES, 2008) Lazaro, E. A.; Makindara, J.; Kilima, T. M.
One of the key trends characterizing agro-food trade in the last two decades has been the increas-ing complexity of public and private standards that are applied to imports into developed coun-tries. This paper aims to identify critical areas to facilitate compliance with sustainability standards in coffee, which is the major traditional export crop for Tanzania. Coffee experienced a dramatic downward trend in world market prices that led to a decreased contribution to foreign exchange earnings in producing countries in the early 2000s. Although prices have improved over the past few years, economies that are dependent on traditional agricultural exports such as coffee need strategies to ensure stability in export earnings. One of the possible venues for increased agri-cultural export value is through exports to niche markets, such as coffee that is certified against one or more sustainability certifications (e.g. Fair Trade, Utz Certified, Organic, and Rainforest Alliance). For this reason, a survey was conducted with key actors (producers, processors, and exporters) in the Tanzanian coffee sector to assess compliance to the Utz standard – the fastest growing sus-tainability standard in the coffee sector. This paper reviews the key trends in relation to sustain-ability standards in coffee, a profile of (and the main challenges faced by) producers that comply with the Utz standard in Tanzania, and the perceptions of those producers who have not yet attempted certification. It provides a first, qualitative, reading of the survey findings, which will be followed up by a more rigorous quantitative assessment of costs and benefits. The findings provided here show that so far only large-scale coffee producers have managed to meet the costs of compliance with the Utz standard in Tanzania; they also show that the rate of growth of Utz-certified coffee sales from Tanzania is quite low, even when compared with neighbouring Uganda and Kenya. High costs of certification and the perceived inadequateness of price premiums on certified coffee were identified as the most limiting factors against compliance. Strategic awareness creation and support services on coffee standards are required among all actors in the coffee sector in Tanzania to meet current consumer demands on social and environ-mental concerns. Therefore, the coffee sector regulatory system should provide an institutional guide on coffee standards. It should also stimulate discussion among smallholder organizations, such as farmer groups and primary cooperative societies, on whether Utz certification should be attempted. Continued research on sustainability standards is also needed to inform actors in the sector on critical emerging issues that affect demand, supply, and prices of coffee.