In Tanzania, provision of local specific, reliable, timely and user-friendly modern weather information services that effectively addresses the needs of farmers, fisher folks and pastoralists are limited. Smallholders depend mainly on indigenous weather forecasting practices to inform their agricultural and pastoral practices and decisions. To give smallholders a reliable information basis for decision-making on their livelihood downscaled, usable , integrated Climate Serivces shall be etablished in the project regions.

Aim

In order to provide the best available knowledge  science-based and indigenous forecasts has to be integrated. Local indigenous knowledge helps to predict the weather more precise on a local weather, based-on nature observations (e.g. clouds, animal behaviour, plants). Therefore integrated forecast can allow to downscale climate services and enable forecasting on different temporal scales. By training the TMA and traditional forcasters downscaled, timely forecast with high relevance and usability for local smallholders can be disseminated.

Awareness for the need to transfer and pass-on indigenous knowledge (IK) should be raised by integrating IK into forecasts. It should also go hand-in-hand with raising awareness of the community to discourage the negative attitude of associating IK with witchcraft practice.

Objective

Climate services contribute to the adaptability of end users (small scale agriculture, fisheries, pastoralism) in the project areas by 2023.

Approach

Integrated Climate Service 

Traditional forecasters shall be trained by CANTZ in collaboration with TMA on weather forecast and how to share and communicate traditionally captured weather information to TMA so as to integrate the two forms of forecast (modern and traditional), the integrated and downscaled climate service will be shared to the public through mobile phones, website, social media, online TV, TVs, radios e.g. Pangani FM and FarmSMS.

Training of Smallholders

At least 2500 smallholders (farmers, pastoralists and fisher folks) will be trained by Training-on-Trainers and NMs from their respective areas to receive downscaled climate services. Downscaled climate services expect to inform smallholder’s decisions on their livelihoods which then minimize climate related risks and enhance their productivity. 

CANTZ SMS portal.

As a way of using innovation CANTZ developed a portal specific targeted farmers,pastoralist and fisheries to be able to receive climate services information asking question and get helped via SMS.So far 452 have been registered from Bagmoyo,Chalinze ,Lushoto and Pangani current receiving this information we expect to register 2500 by year 2023.

Regions

Chalinze, Lushoto and Pangani,Tanzania

Period

September 2020 to August 2023