Income Inequality in Mountain Areas: The Case of Agroforestry Farming Systems in Uluguru Mountains, Tanzania

Van Donge's comment on my reassessment of agrarian change on the Uluguru Mountains, Tanzania, raises a number of issues that go beyond the specificities of the location under scrutiny. Before dealing with these, however, let me restate my argument, which van Donge has reconstructed only selectively. In my article (Ponte 2001a), I argued that rural households are not ‘trapped in decline’ on the Uluguru Mountains, as depicted in previous literature. Although agriculture is not going through an easy transition in the area, and some options are becoming more limited, others are being more skilfully utilised. On the Uluguru Mountains, land scarcity is the main feature of agriculture; deforestation and soil erosion are major problems; and inputs have become increasingly expensive. Under these circumstances, the main ways households can improve their quality of life – short of leaving the area altogether, and in addition to relying on remittances from outside – are to expand land cultivated in other locations, to experiment with alternative farming systems, and to increase non-farm incomes. I observed that Uluguru households were doing all of these in the mid-1990s, and that their income levels and housing characteristics had improved. This was intriguing and challenging to me, since farmers' adaptations to changing markets had not led to higher incomes in other areas that I had researched in Tanzania. Finally, I suggested that economic diversification can play an important role in improving rural livelihoods, but that this process is more likely to take place in locations with well-established economic ties and relatively good access to major markets.Van Donge has a variety of problems with my argument. These can be grouped around three main themes: (1) issues of methodology; (2) a perceived misunderstanding of his argument; and (3) the impact of liberalisation. Due to space limitations, in my reply to van Donge I deal with these larger themes. A more detailed response covering specific evidence and technicalities is available from this author and has been sent to van Donge.

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Characterization and challenges of livestock farming in Mediterranean protected mountain areas (Sierra Nevada, Spain)

Spanish Journal of Agricultural Research ◽

10.5424/sjar/2020181-14288 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 18 (1) ◽

pp. e0601

Author(s):

Francisco A. Ruiz ◽

Marta Vázquez ◽

Jose A. Camuñez ◽

Jose M. Castel ◽

Yolanda Mena

Keyword(s):

Sierra Nevada ◽

Protected Area ◽

Farming Systems ◽

Social Recognition ◽

Production Costs ◽

Medium Size ◽

Livestock Farming ◽

Mountain Areas ◽

Livestock Farming Systems ◽

Grazing Lands

Aim of study: To characterize and analyse the extensive livestock farming systems in environmental protected area and propose strategies for their sustainable improvement.Area of study: Sierra Nevada Protected Area (Spain)Material and methods: Data were collected from a sample of 85 farmers and 48 experts. The information from farmers was expressed in 35 variables, 23 of which were qualitative and 12 quantitative. A multivariate analysis was conducted.Main results: The principal components explained 71.2% of the total variance and the k-means cluster analysis identified three groups: C1 (38 farms), medium-size farms with a predominance of goats and relative dairy specialization; C2 (12 farms), large-size farms with extensive grazing lands, a high proportion of meat purpose animals and managed by young and dynamic farmers and C3 (35 farms), medium-size farms with a high proportion of meat purpose animals and undeveloped business management. The main problems reported were: insufficient pastures for livestock, stagnation of product prices, lack of generational renewal and need for social recognition of livestock farming. These obstacles could be overcome by implementing measures aimed at improving feed self-sufficiency -and thus reduce production costs- increasing income through social recognition of farming, achieving product differentiation, and strengthening short marketing channels. This would be favoured by an increase in associationism and specialized training.Research highlights: Farm management and marketing are important for improve these farming systems. The extensive livestock farming continues to be an important activity in European protected mountain areas.

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Traditional and Adapted Composting Practices Applied in Smallholder Banana-Coffee-Based Farming Systems: Case Studies from Kagera and Morogoro Regions, Tanzania

Organic Waste Composting through Nexus Thinking ◽

10.1007/978-3-030-36283-6_8 ◽

2020 ◽

pp. 165-184

Author(s):

Anika Reetsch ◽

Didas Kimaro ◽

Karl-Heinz Feger ◽

Kai Schwärzel

Keyword(s):

Soil Fertility ◽

Farming Systems ◽

Traditional Use ◽

Available Nutrients ◽

Uluguru Mountains ◽

Increasing Demand ◽

African Rift ◽

Economic Analyses ◽

The 1960S ◽

Farm Waste

AbstractIn Tanzania, about 90% of the banana-coffee-based farming systems lie in the hands of smallholder farmer families. In these systems, smallholder farmers traditionally add farm waste to crop fields, making soils rich in organic matter (humus) and plant-available nutrients. Correspondingly, soils remained fertile during cultivation for over a century. Since the 1960s, the increasing demand for food and biofuels of a growing population has resulted in an overuse of these farming systems, which has occurred in tandem with deforestation, omitted fallows, declined farm size, and soil erosion. Hence, humus and nutrient contents in soils have decreased and soils gradually degraded. Inadequate use of farm waste has led to a further reduction in soil fertility, as less organic material is added to the soils for nutrient supply than is removed during harvesting. Acknowledging that the traditional use of farm waste successfully built up soil fertility over a century and has been reduced in only a few decades, we argue that traditional composting practices can play a key role in rebuilding soil fertility, if such practices are adapted to face the modern challenges. In this chapter, we discuss two cases in Tanzania: one on the traditional use of compost in the Kagera region (Great African Rift Valley) and another about adapted practices to produce compost manure in the Morogoro region (Uluguru Mountains). Both cases refer to rainfed, smallholder banana-coffee-based farming systems. To conclude, optimised composting practices enable the replenishment of soil nutrients, increase the capacity of soils to store plant-available nutrients and water and thus, enhance soil fertility and food production in degraded banana-coffee-based farming systems. We further conclude that future research is needed on a) nutrient cycling in farms implementing different composting practices and on b) socio-economic analyses of farm households that do not successfully restore soil fertility through composting.

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POSITION AND FUNCTIONS OF DECIDUOUS FRUIT TREES IN THE FARMING SYSTEMS AT UPPER MGETA, ULUGURU MOUNTAINS, TANZANIA

Acta Horticulturae ◽

10.17660/actahortic.1991.270.10 ◽

1991 ◽

pp. 91-102 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

T.C. Delobel ◽

G.R. Evers ◽

A.P. Maerere

Keyword(s):

Farming Systems ◽

Fruit Trees ◽

Uluguru Mountains ◽

Deciduous Fruit

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Sheep farming systems and nature management of rangeland in French Mediterranean mountain areas

Livestock Production Science ◽

10.1016/j.livprodsci.2005.05.017 ◽

2005 ◽

Vol 96 (1) ◽

pp. 87-95 ◽

Cited By ~ 15

Author(s):

J. Lasseur

Keyword(s):

Farming Systems ◽

Nature Management ◽

Mountain Areas

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Trapped in decline? Reassessing agrarian change and economic diversification on the Uluguru Mountains, Tanzania

The Journal of Modern African Studies ◽

10.1017/s0022278x01003536 ◽

2001 ◽

Vol 39 (1) ◽

pp. 81-100 ◽

Cited By ~ 13

Author(s):

Stefano Ponte

Keyword(s):

Rural Livelihoods ◽

Farming Systems ◽

Agrarian Change ◽

Farm Income ◽

African Countries ◽

Economic Diversification ◽

Uluguru Mountains ◽

Alternative Farming ◽

Market Liberalisation ◽

Economic Ties

Analysing the dynamics of agrarian change and economic diversification is central for understanding the current transformation of African countries under market reforms. This article examines the complex changes taking place in the densely populated Uluguru Mountains of Tanzania, and places the Uluguru case in the context of wider debates dealing with market liberalisation, economic diversification, poverty, and inequality. It argues that rural households are not ‘trapped in decline’ on the Uluguru Mountains, as depicted in previous literature. Under the harsh realities of farming in this area, households can improve their livelihoods in three ways – short of migrating and in addition to relying on remittances. These are to expand land cultivated in the surrounding plains, to experiment with alternative farming systems, and to increase non-farm income. Uluguru households are doing all of the above, with a certain degree of success. Economic diversification can thus play an important role in improving rural livelihoods in Tanzania and beyond, but this process is more likely to take place in locations with well-established economic ties and relatively good access to major markets.

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