Arriving in Kibaya 7-15-2010

7-15-2010
So I have arrived safe and sound in the beautiful Kibaya. My contact and friend here, Samuel Maduma, recommended that I arrive now so to coincide with him finishing his semester’s studies at a teachers college in Dodoma. This is my second time in Kibaya, with my first visit coming after my study abroad experience at the University of Dar es Salaam. I thoroughly enjoyed my first time here, and when I found out that I received the Community Based Research Funding, I thought Kibaya would be the best place to do so, given that I was confident I could be involved in the community here.

While I have not been here long, I have jumped right into the research process. I had a meeting with a few local farmers over dinner my second night, and had a great time discussing the issues that they confront as farmers here in the kiteto district. I explained my research interests: My SURF proposal focused on agricultural export commodities as a means for sustainable development. However, after talking about Parachichi production (which happens primarily in the northern areas of the Simanjiro district) many of them explained a more local problem that was more pertinent to their community: Food storage.

The farmers from this initial group explained that most of the growers in this region do not have access to anywhere to store their crops, so they end up being price takers in the harvest season, because they want to sell as much of their crop as possible (this time of year) for fear of much of their crop spoiling in the heat of the October months. I am going to plan a meeting with a few community members this week to discuss the possibility of researching this issue, with a focus on what solutions exist for the community.