SOME beneficiaries of Tanzania Social Action Fund (Tasaf) programme in Itigi District Council, in Singida region, have blamed failure of their income-generating projects on Extension Officers.
One of Tasaf’s components is to economically empower the poor Tanzanians by helping them to start income-generating activities.
The beneficiaries leveled accusations against the extension officers yesterday during a media visit to their workplaces. The visit was aimed at seeing their activities, hearing their success stories and challenges facing them.
Tasaf beneficiaries in the area noted that if the extension officers had ever bothered to pay any official visits to their homes, they would have provided them with professional advice on how to run and improve their projects in best way possible that would have saved a lot to their properties.
“When I first received the grant, I bought a few chickens and I had high expectation to benefit from Tasaf programme but it did not take me long before all the chickens I owned to die of unknown disease” said Joha Ramadhan, a resident of Songambele area and a mother of four.
She continued: “Then I started buying and rearing ducks because, someone told me, they are not easily attacked by bird diseases. Indeed, here I am with the ducks doing wonders in my life…Every time they multiply and accumulate in numbers. I sell some of them and fulfill my basic needs. I really thank the Tasaf for improving my livelihood.”
The same grievances were aired by an 80-year-old Veronica Andalu who said since she started receiving grants from Tasaf in 2017, she has never seen any extension officer coming at her home to give her advice on how to manage her poultry farm.
“My chickens started dying while others were being stolen by petty thieves who took advantage of my short sightedness; as you can see I am now old. Then, my grandson who was staying with me also left because of the hard life we were living,” the desperate old woman explained.
Aware of the challenges, other beneficiaries opted for projects which did not require much help from extension officers and they are doing well.
These included Scolastica Wilson who has opened a tailoring mart at Tambukareli area and Mwashamu Sadick who is selling wooden cooking spoons. They expressed their ambitions of improving their small enterprenuers to big businesses.
District Executive Director (DED) for Itigi district council, John Mgalula, said Tasaf programme had tremendously helped and improved the livelihoods of many of the residents in the area who were in dire need of basic needs, urging his subordinates to ensure that many projects initiated by Tasaf beneficiaries remained sustainable.