Farmers Field Day - Mbeya

Demo plots at MATI-UYOLE. Photo: Dir. Sniga

On June 19, 2024, the Scale Up Farmers Field and Business School (SU-FFBS) project, in collaboration with Uyole Agriculture Training Institute (MATI UYOLE), hosted an impactful Farmers Field Day in Mbeya. The event, graced by CARE Tanzania’s Country Director, Ms. Prudence Masako, as the guest of honor, aimed to demonstrate the success of the FFBS model adopted by MATI UYOLE.

The event drew over 500 participants, including government officials from regional and district levels, lecturers and students from Uyole, Inyala, and Igurusi Agriculture Training Institutes, representatives from Sokoine University of Agriculture (SUA), farmers, agricultural input suppliers, buyers, CARE staff, and media representatives. Attendees gathered to exchange knowledge, explore innovative farming techniques, and learn about the FFBS model’s real-world application.

FFBS Demonstration Plots and Agricultural Innovations

MATI UYOLE established various FFBS demonstration plots, inspired by CARE Tanzania’s FFBS project, focusing on crops like soybean and sunflower. Additionally, maize demo plots were set up by seed producers such as SEEDCO, DEKALB, AFRISEED, ZAMSEED, and PIONEER, while fertilizer companies like Agri Power contributed to showcasing agricultural innovations. These demo plots illustrated how the FFBS model empowers farmers, particularly small-scale farmers, to adopt modern farming techniques and diversify their crops to access new markets.

Ms. Prudence Masako and other dignitaries toured the FFBS plots to observe how this gender-transformative, market-based, nutrition-sensitive, and climate-resilient approach is implemented across different crops. The FFBS model helps small-scale farmers enhance their productivity, profitability, and participation in equitable agriculture systems.

Student Performances and Value-Added Products

The event was further enriched by creative performances from MATI UYOLE students, including a drama and song that summarized the core components of the FFBS model. Additionally, farmers displayed a variety of value-added products and farming inputs at booths, showcasing products like soybean oil, soybean flour, sunflower oil, soybean meat, high-quality seeds, water pumps, avocado seedlings, and fertilizers.

Scaling Up the FFBS Model Across Tanzania

CARE Tanzania’s Farmers Field and Business School (FFBS) model has proven to be a valuable tool in transforming smallholder farming by integrating agricultural education with business skills. As CARE Tanzania looks to the future, it aims to collaborate with the Ministry of Agriculture to expand the FFBS approach across all 13 agricultural training institutes in Tanzania.