Missungwi Income and Food Security Project - Final Report of the Mid-Term Evaluation

Background

CARE International in Tanzania has been implementing a five-year Missungwi Income and Food Security (MIFOSE) project in Missungwi district since January 2001. The overall goal of MIFOSE is to increase the food and income security of 16 000 vulnerable households in ten of the twenty wards of Missungwi District, particularly those headed by women, by December 2005. These are the intermediate goals:
• Increased acquisition and use of appropriate agricultural approaches, technologies (1) and inputs (2) by the target Households.
• Increased number of households engaged in on-farm and off -farm income generation activities largely based on savings mobilisation.
• Community based institutions (3) are effectively supporting income and food security initiatives of the targeted households

(1) Efficient, effective scientifically recommended and environmentally sounds technologies, approaches that are locally compatible.
(2) Includes seed, organic and inorganic fertilisers, organic and inorganic pesticides and other farm implements.
(3) Community Institutions include Community Based Organisations, Farmers Apex Associations, Local NGOs.

Purpose/objective

This Mid-Term Evaluation (MTE) aims at informing implementation of the main phase of project in which a reassessment of the relevance of the activities, their effectiveness, impact, the efficiency, and sustainability are the key criteria. The MTE should be more inclined to the process than to the impacts.

Methodology

Many data collection tools were used in order to capture both quantitative and qualitative output and process indicators. The tools included document and literature reviews, sample household surveys using a questionnaire, key informant interviews, focus group discussions, and workshops. While the survey questionnaire was administered to random samples of households, focus group interviews were directed at specific groups of individuals, including project staff, farmers groups etc. Special effort was made to have female-headed households included in the random samples and deliberate effort was also made to include individuals not participating in Project activities in focus group interviews and among individuals sampled for responding to the survey questionnaire. Inclusion of individuals not participating in project activities provided a control group, which would be compared to those participating in project activities, thus confirming that changes are attributable to project activities.

Key findings

Presentation of the findings is structured along the three project components: technology transfer; economic development, and capacity development. 4976 (31% of the target household) households have taken part in technology transfer halfway in the project life. This may be low in comparison to the target of 16,000 households, but with 622 innovative farmers (IFs) recruited so far, it is possible to reach the target in the remaining period. It is however regretful to see that only 19% of households reported an increased agricultural production. The Community Based Organisations on savings and credit have reached a total of 3 813 households which is 24% of the target households. Of the 3813 households, 634 are female-headed while 3,179 are male-headed households
600 Community Resource Persons (CRPs) on savings and credit schemes have been trained. The Capacity Development Component has provided training to a total of 6, 331 individuals, of whom 5,437 are from male-headed households while 894 individuals are from female-headed households. Training sessions, which included linkages, have dwelt on such topics as gender, HIV/AIDS, participatory extension methodology, participatory capacity assessment, governance, etc. Villagers have also been organised in Community Based Organisations. The component has therefore been able to reach 9,377 households, which is about 59% of the 16 000 targeted households.

Recommendations

Attention should be paid to the IFs, so that they are not over-worked and put in charge of too much. Also there should be improvements in the training of Community Resource Persons. The aspect of producing marketable crops should be a part of the agricultural strategy, and the savings and credit organisations should adapt their conditions for investments to be made in agriculture. These organisations should also consider insurance to become less vulnerable. Personnel is needed to keep up the momentum, especially so that the IFs and the CRPs do not feel on their own.