RECODA works with small scale farmers to promote improved livelihoods and increased resilience.
What is the challenge? Farming systems for small-scale farmers in many areas of Tanzania are characterized by mixed farming, whereby crops and livestock are produced together. However, the farming system is collapsing due to the population pressure, land degradation, and increased droughts and/or floods due to climate change, leading to unreliable rainfall amounts and patterns. This leads to escalating poverty and food insecurity, whereas the demand for food is going up. Additionally, productivity is very low for many reasons, amongst which is the limited information and knowledge of existing technologies that can enhance agricultural production and heal the severe environmental degradation. Upon production, the markets are limited since the perspective of the market is quite narrow.
Intervention: The implementation of community economic development programs is done using the RIPAT approach (www.ripat.or.tz), where growth of small-scale farmers is mainly through enhanced productivity. Careful community mobilization and sensitization is done to facilitate the communities to identify and utilize locally available resources and opportunities, and this is coupled with the selection of crop and livestock value chains.
The programs are agricultural, with the following components:
Agroecology intensification in crop and livestock production with crop-livestock integration and incorporating environmental regeneration and conservation. Considers the 10 elements of agroecology (FAO, 2014).
Improved crop and livestock production, which embraces climate-smart agriculture (agro-ecological) technologies: intensification, diversification, and integration
Implementation of different value chains for crop and livestock production
Post-harvest management, including value addition, utilization, and processing
Marketing using the Farmer Market School (FMS) approach

RECODA applies the definition by the World Food Summit in 1996: “Food security exists when all people, at all times, have physical and economic access to sufficient, safe, and nutritious food to meet their dietary needs and food preferences for an active and healthy life.” The definition describes what are known as the four pillars of food security: accessibility (having food purchasing power), food availability (ability to produce food), utilization (eating habits or consumption), and stability (resilience or sustainability) of the availability.
Project designing and implementation
Most projects implemented by the organization apply the RIPAT approach whereby designing of the project starts with undertaking the situation analysis in order to understand the situation before start of project. The projects then consider the food and nutritional security of the communities and also the enhancement of income and this leads to the selection and implementation of a wide range of relevant technologies (basket of options) for crops and livestock production. The projects apply agroecology principles (terrestrials), which ultimately enhance food security and income for smallholder farmers.
The basket of option developed ensures that it takes into consideration the nutritional needs of the communities but also the environmental capacity to support nutrition. Training on nutrition for all project participants is undertaken in order to enhance good health and this includes also, utilization of local foods. Hence, the projects engage in nutrition sensitive agriculture and considering the available resources together with training and demonstration, build the capacity of the community to understand and step-up nutritional security

Agroecology knowledge and how it supports rehabilitation and rejuvenation of the environment, including farmlands, is crucial in dealing with climate change and the environment. Climate change (CC) is very evident now, from the in the year 2010, though the change existed even before but the effects are very pronounced now. It affects production, environment, and income of small-scale farmers. This means that to make the lives of the small-scale farmers sustainable, it is very crucial to ensure the environment can support the communities and their productive activities.
RECODA uses different technologies and interventions to adapt to and mitigate the effects of climate change. One such effort deals with the water supply for production through the construction of water reservoirs for water storage in order to increase the production period. Farmers are trained on different technologies of in situ rainwater harvesting (RWH) such as Zambian (chaka) hoe technology, nine seeded holes and banana holes. Others include incorporation of cover crops in the farming system and mulching of soils.
To preserve and conserve the environment, different interventions are used, including construction of contours, soil cover, agroforestry, use of energy-saving cooking methods and fireless cookers. The returning of carbon into the soil through use of farmyard manure, compost and crop remains is practiced by farmers.
Soil health management: soil health is the capacity of the soil to sustain productivity, maintain environmental quality, and promote plant and animal health. Soil health is the foundation of the food production system, both in livestock and crop-based systems. We engage farmers to improve and maintain soil health by increasing the carbon pool in the soil (which also addresses climate change) by using organic soil additions, including farmyard manure, boma compost, biochar compost, intercropping with leguminous plants, soil cover, minimum tillage, enhancing macro and microfauna in the soil, soil water conservation, including agroforestry, and soil testing, among others.

Most small-scale farmers do not access credit from financial institutions due to various reasons, including a lack of collateral to secure the loans. On the other side, some farmers do not have a culture of saving money. The essence of microfinance within rural communities is to inculcate a saving culture, build up investment capital, and improve safety nets for rural households. In this respect, RECODA works with small-scale farmers to accumulate cash for investment and for other basic needs. This intervention is combined with capacity building and facilitation to produce and earn cash, which can be saved.
Farmers are trained by the Village Savings and Loans Association (VSLA), and they start saving and accessing loans. At the same time, community-based trainers (CBT) are trained to continue spreading the knowledge to other members of the village.

In order to improve the performance of the different technologies and for the farmers to understand and participate in the verification of interventions, the projects incorporate an element of research. Apart from feeding the farmers with knowledge, it is also used to create and share knowledge with scientists and other actors in the development realm.

Monitoring for action learning is done to ensure a continuous check on the progress of the programs in order to improve performance. Through the involvement of the project participants, the monitoring responds to community needs, including adjustments where necessary to enhance the delivery of results.
Using the RIPAT manual, the quality control (QC) sessions are carried out periodically using the open data kit (ODK) tool for data collection. The QC sessions help to ascertain that the project is on track and is following the milestones set over the project period. 

This is a department that caters to the capacity needs of different stakeholders and project participants.

RECODA has qualified consultants who undertake consultancies at all stages of the project cycle (design, implementation, evaluation, and impact assessment). Other consultancies include capacity building of trainers (ToT) and lead farmers (LFs) on different aspects, including poultry, pigs, dairy goats, conservation agriculture, agroecology, nutrition, post-harvest management, and marketing, among others. Building the capacity of partners who are interested in the RIPAT approach is also done. Policy analysis and advocacy are undertaken for policymakers to take action in creating a conducive environment for safeguarding and/or facilitating various development initiatives.