Mr. Maloloi Kibangashi is a pastoralist from Dakawa village in Mvomero District, Morogoro region, Tanzania. He dreamed of providing his children with better education by sending them to a private school and building a brick house that would not collapse during the rainy season.
For a long time, he was involved in pastoralist farming, where he had more than 3000 herds of cows roaming around in semi-arid areas in Morogoro. Due to the nature of pastoralist farming, the herds were faced with diseases and climate change effects, including lack of pasture, which decreased their size over time. Also, the milk and meat quality and quantity remained low as he kept local breeds that were low in milk and meat productivity.
In 2018, the Private Sector Desk was established at the Ministry of Livestock and Fisheries with support from USAID through the Sera Bora (Better Policies) Project. The Private Sector Desk works to create an enabling environment for private sector investments in the livestock and fisheries sector, deliver evidence-based research results to spur policy reforms and ensure coordination between the four business chains: value addition, costing, profitability, and human capital. The Private Sector Desk also creates a platform to leverage Public Private Partnerships (PPP). Over the years, the Desk has successfully implemented key reforms in the sector, such as accelerating the availability of soft loans through the Tanzania Agriculture Development Bank, promoting insurance for the sector, and using research-based findings to advocate for the removal of restrictive land ownership regulations. The Private Sector Desk constantly communicates these advancements to farmers like Mr. Maloloi.
Armed with this vital information, Mr. Maloloi was empowered to make an informed decision; he decided to sell most of his local cattle and bought 570 acres of land, fenced it, and bought 215 Fresian and Ayrshire dairy cows. As a result, milk productivity increased from 300 to more than 2,000 liters per day, earning more than USD 1,476.89 per day from secure and reliable markets – Shambani Milk and Tanga Fresh processing plants, as well as other markets in Morogoro and Dar es Salaam. Mr. Maloloi has expanded his business by adding 490 goats and 300 beef cattle and is now receiving extension service support and input credit. He has also constructed a place to store hay for feeding his cattle during dry spells. At his farm, he has 29 employees, including one manager, a veterinary officer, and 27 casual laborers.
The financial stability gained from his thriving farm has allowed him to renovate his house, transforming it into a comfortable home, while also affording his children access to quality education and opportunities he once only imagined.
