Document Type: Progress Reports

The Tanzania SERA Policy Project of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Feed the Future Initiative (FtF) completed its third full year of operation on September 30, 2014. SERA Project has made significant achievements towards improving the agricultural policy environment and developing individual and institutional capacity in the three and one‐half years of the Project. SERA Project is well placed to continue those achievements over the remaining one and one‐half years of the Project, and has achieved a reputation for fair, balanced, and timely analysis and cutting edge research on important policy issues. This has led the Government of the United Republic of Tanzania (GoT), the Revolutionary Government of Zanzibar (RGoZ), and development partners to regularly turn to SERA Project for research and advice on policy issues. SERA Project has also actively engaged in a program of individual and institutional capacity building to improve the ability of individuals and institutions to engage in policy analysis and advocacy, and to implement policies and improved methodologies identified through research. The SERA Project website was launched in Year 3 and will be a primary information and advocacy tool for policy reform efforts.

Policy Research and Reform activities in Year 3 focused on quantifying the impacts of the GoT’s decision to lift the maize export ban in 2011, finalizing a study on land compensation schemes and the powers of local communities to lease village lands, and on an analysis of rice irrigation in Zanzibar. In addition, SERA Project continued active discussions with Government and other stakeholders on policy issues that arose during the year including the impacts of duty‐free rice imports, the appropriate stocking levels for food security, the need for export permits, promoting exports of surplus cereals, and improving data for policy analysis. Efforts also continued to improve the tax treatment of seeds and seed packaging materials through support to the Ministry of Agriculture, Food Security and Cooperatives (MAFC) and the Tanzania Seed Traders Association (TASTA). SERA Project’s effort to support the development of a modern collateral registry at the Bank of Tanzania (BoT) also progressed and the activity is now reported to be high priority of the BoT. The Food Security Policy Options Paper planned for completion in Year 3 was not completed due to the focus on other policy issues and the busy schedule of the MAFC which precluded the opportunity to discuss preliminary findings prior to finalizing the Paper.

The focus of SERA Project’s Capacity Building activities in Year 3 was on the training of staff of the MAFC and other Ministries on the implementation of the Food Basket Methodology (FBM), and on the Data Assessment of Food Security and the Early Warning Systems. FBM capacity building activities included two trainings of two weeks, each undertaken in collaboration with the staff of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Economic Research Service (ERS). This capacity building activity seeks to strengthen the capacity of the MAFC’s Department of Food Security (DFS) to monitor food costs at the regional level in a more objective and timely manner. The Data Assessment focused on identifying data needs and availability for food security analysis and will likely lead to further capacity building activities. In addition to these important activities, SERA Project continued to support institutional capacity building in the Zanzibar Department of Food Security and Nutrition (DFSN) and the Policy Seminar Series at Sokoine University (SUA).

The Tanzania SERA Project assists both the Government of the Republic of Tanzania (GoT) and the private sector to enable a broad‐based, sustainable transformation of the agricultural sector through policy reform. The vision for this project is twofold: to improve the policy and regulatory environment for agriculture growth and to build a group of public sector institutions, advocacy organizations, and individuals capable of performing rigorous policy analysis and advocating for policy reform. The SERA Project is part of USAID’s Tanzania Feed the Future (FtF) Initiative and works closely with other implementing partners and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).

There are three major components to the SERA Project:

1. Policy Research and Reform to improve agricultural policies to enhance food security and increase agricultural productivity in Tanzania with focus on policies affecting investments in SAGCOT region.
2. Individual and Institutional Capacity Building to build local institutional and individual capacity to do agricultural policy research to support policy and regulatory reform.
3. Advocacy and Communications to strengthen advocacy and communications for policy reforms and build alliances with partners to work toward these objectives.

Improving agricultural policies will be accomplished by working with the GoT and other stakeholders to identify important policy constraints to growth in the agricultural sector and helping to alleviate these constraints through policy reform. The SERA Project will conduct and commission evidence‐based policy research to inform the GoT and other stakeholders of the impacts of existing policies and the potential benefits of improved policies. In addition, the SERA Project will develop the capacity of individuals and organizations to engage in policy analysis and advocate for policy change. At the conclusion of the project, we expect USAID will leave behind an improved policy environment and a legacy of enabling the GoT and other stakeholders to initiate, develop, and utilize evidence‐based research in policy decisions and implementation. The project will also empower local research and private sector advocacy groups to more effectively use analysis and strategic communications to lobby for change, to build national partnerships that create consensus around agriculture policy, and to monitor the impacts of policy. The SERA Project will focus its activities around priorities identified in collaboration with the Southern Agriculture Growth Corridor of Tanzania (SAGCOT) initiative.

The USAID contract for the SERA Project was awarded in April 2011 with a start date of May 1, 2011. Activities started when the team attended the USAID FtF Implementing Partners Meeting in Kilombero, Tanzania from May 23‐27, 2011. The first work planning meeting was held on June 27, 2011 and the project began operations with limited staff in July 2011. The period from May to September 2011 was designated as Year 0.5 and the first full year work plan covered the period from October 1, 2011 to September 30, 2012 to coincide with USAID’s fiscal year. The project began its second year activities on October 1, 2012, and this Annual Report is for Year 1 covering the period October 1, 2011 to September 30, 2012 and also serves as the Q4 report of Year 1.

The Tanzania SERA project will assist both the Government of the Republic of Tanzania (GoT) and the private sector in enabling a broad‐based, sustainable transformation of the agricultural sector through policy reform.  The project will focus on current policy and the regulatory environment for agriculture—from the transactional “hot” topics to the needed strategic foundational changes— building capacity of local institutions to lead informed dialogue on policy and regulatory issues in the agriculture sector and advocate for the necessary changes.

The vision for this project is twofold: to improve the policy and regulatory environment for agriculture growth and to build a group of public sector institutions, advocacy organizations, and individuals capable of performing rigorous policy analysis in support of evidence‐based advocacy and policy reform. At the conclusion of the project, we expect USAID will leave behind sustainable capacity within the GoT to initiate, develop, and utilize evidence‐based research in policy decisions and implementation, empowering local research and private sector advocacy groups to more effectively use analysis and strategic communications to lobby for change, and building national partnerships that create consensus around agriculture policy and monitor the impacts of policy. The SERA project will focus all activities around priorities identified in collaboration with the Southern Agriculture Growth Corridor of Tanzania (SAGCOT) initiative.

The SERA project has three major components:

1. Policy Research and Reform: Improve agricultural policies to support food security and agricultural productivity in Tanzania with focus primarily on policies affecting investments in the SAGCOT region.
2. Individual and Institutional Capacity Building: Build local institutional and individual capacity to do agricultural policy research and implement policy reform and regulation.
3. Advocacy, Communications and Alliances: Strengthen advocacy and communications for policy reforms and build alliances with partners to work toward these objectives.

The Tanzania SERA Policy Project assists both the Government of the Republic of Tanzania (GoT) and the private sector to enable a broad‐based, sustainable transformation of the agricultural sector through policy reform. The vision for this project is twofold: to improve the policy and regulatory environment for agriculture growth and to build a group of public sector institutions, advocacy organizations, and individuals capable of performing rigorous policy analysis and advocating for policy reform. Improving agricultural policies is accomplished by working with the GoT and other stakeholders to identify important policy constraints to growth in the agricultural sector and by helping to alleviate these constraints through policy and regulatory reforms.

The Tanzania SERA Project has made significant achievements towards improving the agricultural policy environment, and developing individual and institutional capacity in the four years of the Project. SERA is positioned to successfully transition on going activities and conclude work on priority areas in 2016. The SERA Project’s reputation for fair, balanced, and timely analysis and cutting edge research on important policy issues continues to provide access to decision makers in the public and private sector. SERA will continue to conduct research and provide capacity building support with a focus on providing an actionable framework for the continued analysis and reform of critical policy issues in agriculture to alleviate poverty.

The Tenure and Global Climate Change (TGCC) program provides the United States Agency for International Development with the opportunity to explore the relationship between the governance of agriculture, forests, and fisheries landscapes and the achievement of sustainable land use and resilient communities through analysis, field work, and policy engagement. During this quarter, activities included:

Zambia: The Petauke District Land Alliance (PDLA) began the distribution of customary land certificates following the installation of Chief Sandwe, and also completed a site plan for over 1,000 parcels in Ukwimi Resettlement Area. Following the completion of impact evaluation data collection, the Chipata District Land Alliance (CDLA) began completing demarcation and claims in additional villages in Mkanda and Maguya Chiefdoms. TGCC carried out a training on land governance with the House of Chiefs, and integrated customary data into the National Spatial Data Infrastructure. TGCC supported the participation of government, civil society, and chiefs at the African Union’s Land Policy Conference in Ethiopia.

Burma: In Burma local civil society organization (CSO) partners completed community mapping of village tract boundaries and resources, as well as associated local outreach with government and broader communities. TGCC held a series of events to document lessons learned across these CSO partners and with state and regional government and to integrate lessons into broader practices.

Vietnam, Mangroves, and Marine Tenure: In Vietnam, the field team completed the dissemination of coastal spatial plans and worked on the documentation of the process, as well as broader community outreach on coastal zone management. The team also finalized mangrove co-management discussions and an assessment report. Results were shared at a national level workshop with other mangrove related activities from across the country. Preparations are underway for a mangroves webinar to be held in 2018. TGCC drafted two journal articles for publication on the marine tenure work.

TFA 2020: Activities in Ghana were completed with the delivery of farm seal documents from TGCC partner Landmapp and the completion of land tenure training. Private sector and civil society partners participated in a Lessons Learned workshop in December to disseminate project findings. TGCC partner World Resources Institute (WRI) completed the Tierras Indigenas platform and launched it with local partners in Paraguay in November 2017.

Challenges: TGCC encountered few notable challenges this past quarter.

Priorities: In the coming quarter, TGCC will focus on documenting lessons learned and sharing outcomes, primarily in Washington, but also through social media and with partner missions.

TGCC provides USAID the opportunity to explore the relationship between the governance of agriculture, forests, and fisheries landscapes and achieving sustainable land use and resilient communities through technical analysis, field work, and policy engagement. During this quarter, activities included:

Zambia: The Petauke District Land Alliance (PDLA) focused on carrying out validation activities in Sandwe Chiefdom of household data, as well as collaboration with the Ministry of Lands and the Department of Resettlement on the Ukwimi Resettlement Area. The Chipata District Land Alliance
(CDLA) was able to advance the distribution of customary certificates in Mshawa chiefdom, and continue on parcel administration. TGCC also continued coordination with government on engagement with the House of Chiefs, and projected collaboration on validation of the National Land Policy. TGCC completed methodologies for land conflict resolution and for land-use planning.

Burma: From the policy side, the TGCC Land Tenure Project (LTP) supported donor coordination discussions and participated in the Agriculture Policy Unit (APU) further clarifying its role with government moving forward. LTP carried out pilot site three activities in the Sagaing Region through partnerships with two local civil society organizations (CSO). LTP focused on mapping engagements with additional local CSO subcontractors and the completion of a series of lessons learned engagements with each pilot site. These are in the process of being shared at national meetings with government and integrated into program outcome reports.

Vietnam, Mangroves, and Marine Tenure: In Vietnam, the field team completed marine spatial planning activities across the three participating communes in Tien Lang District. The resultant planning process was well received, and is being shared both with government counterparts and academia. Work with CIFOR was completed this quarter for global, Indonesia and Tanzania reviews. TGCC finalized country assessments associated with marine tenure lessons and is consolidating lessons learned into a public summary.

TFA 2020: Activities in Ghana progressed smoothly with the documentation of almost 200 farms through a subcontract with Landmapp, the completion and presentation of the financial model with Ecom, and dialogue with chiefs and community leaders on alternative dispute resolution. USAID carried out a site visit at the end of the quarter demonstrating the commitment of project partners. TGCC partner World Resources Institute (WRI) launched work in Paraguay supporting consolidation of indigenous peoples’ land claims through a spatial database that will allow these groups to work with private sector actors and government on forest land use in Paraguay. Based on a series of meetings, protocols for submitting and validating data were agreed upon.

Challenges: TGCC’s budget realignment request (submitted in early 2016) was not approved, resulting in substantial revisions to how grants and subcontracts are used on the project. TGCC revised its approach to expand the use of grants in the last eight months of the contract, and cut back on some interventions.

Priorities: In the coming quarter, TGCC will focus on finalizing internal country deliverables, carrying out lessons learned and final report-out events in each project country, and staying within budget across all countries. TGCC will work on communicating country and thematic results in preparation for project closeout.

The present Semi-Annual Progress Report provides an update on implementation of FY12 annual work plan activities and progress made towards FY12 targets established in the updated Performance Monitoring Plan (PMP). For the FY12 period the project has met or exceeded all targets. This report complements the first semi-annual report as well as weekly and monthly reports that are submitted to the Contracting Officer´s Representative (COR).

The Project´s implementation strategy remains focused on reducing the following four main threats to biodiversity conservation in six priority sites along the coast of Ecuador: (1) Loss and/or alteration of critical habitats, (2) Climate change, (3) Lack of economic alternatives, and (4) Insufficient institutional capacity for biodiversity conservation. To this end, the project builds local capacity to manage Protected Areas, implement climate change adaptation measures, and manage integrated farms. In addition, the project has provides tools for communities and local governments to mitigate and respond to climate risks and is helping develop a climate change strategy for the entire Guayas province. It is also promoting market access for products that support conservation (such as red crab, which depend on protecting mangroves; tagua, which depends on forest conservation; and organic cacao produced using environmentally safe practices). To improve livelihoods it also helps people access cash-for-conservation payments for protecting natural forests under the Ministry of Environment´s (MAE) Socio Bosque Program. Lastly, the project continues to work in close partnership with the MAE and provide high level forestry policy guidance.

To date, the Project has trained 3,657 people, promoted 16 new commercial linkages, and helped individuals and communities access $9.1M in cash-for conservation payments for protecting 38,745 hectares. As a result of project technical assistance, over 11,120 people are benefiting economically and 426,133 hectares are under improved management. Parallel to this, the Project strengthened conservation coalitions that serve as platforms for coordinating natural resource management with local public and private sector actors, and has leveraged over $14.3 million. For a more detailed summary of results to date please see Section 1.

Especially noteworthy achievements this reporting period include (1) launching red crab stock analysis results with the National Fishery Institute, (2) conducting an assessment of tagua palm populations within Machalilla National Park and then developing guidance on how tagua harvesting could be manageed within Protected Areas (3) helping establish three tagua collection centers and drying racks and linking their value added products (dried tagua) with new markets at higher prices (4) developing a Manual Protected Area Operational Management and developing a pilot annual operations plan for Machalilla National Park and Antisana Ecological Reserve based on the manual (5) helping communities (Puerto Roma, Mondragón, etc) apply for and obtain a new mangrove concessions, (6) supporting the Galera San Francisco Marine Reserve promote sustainable fishing practices (7) supporting Ecocacao become technical advisors for the Caja Campesina Agro-Ecológica Muisne (CCAM) (8) continuing technical assistance for integrated farm management (9) publishing a Comparative Study on Development of Climate Change Adaptation Measures for Machalilla National Park and El Salado Wildlife Production Reserve (10) holding a series of community workshops to improve fishery management in Churute (11) working with the Guayas provincial government to prepare the Guayas Climate Change Adaptation Strategy,(13) continuing to support Machalilla National Park to improve protected area management, including tourism and fishery management and strengthening surveillance and monitoring systems (14) helping communities develop new applications to protect over 7,000 hectares under Socio Bosque, and (15) helping the Río Blanco community obtain its land title. This period the project has also expanded communications materials, launching the second project video regarding its work to protect Machalilla National Park. The project recognizes the role, the guidance and continual support the COR, Rocío Cedeño, has played in meeting its FY12 targets. Key to the project´s ability to complete the FY12 work plan activities and meet its goals is the MAE´s collaboration and recognition of project technical assistance, which is also an integral part of their internal work plans and goals.

Feed the Future Tanzania Land Tenure Assistance (LTA) seeks to clarify and document land ownership, increase local understanding of land use and land rights, and support land use. This monthly report covers project activities undertaken for the period December 1-31, 2015.

Feed the Future Tanzania Land Tenure Assistance (LTA) seeks to clarify and document land ownership, increase local understanding of land use and land rights, and support land use. This monthly report covers project activities undertaken for the period January 1-31, 2016.

Feed the Future Tanzania Land Tenure Assistance (LTA) seeks to clarify and document land ownership, increase local understanding of land use and land rights, and support land use. This monthly report covers project activities undertaken for the period February 1-29, 2016.