UNA Tanzania is implementing the climate resilience project in Mpwapwa District which aims to pilot a 7-pillar regional resilience model in Tanzania to strengthen the ability of communities to cope with and regulate the effects of climate change. The 7 pillars model focuses on engaging the communities to drive their nature-based solutions which can help create sustainable living conditions in their villages. The 7 pillars are natural resources management and environmental sustainability; community health and water; governance and human rights-based approaches; economic empowerment; peace building, safety and security; infrastructure development as well as education empowerment. The project is conducted in partnership with IAS Kenya and LM in Tanzania.

Agriculture, livestock rearing, and a few, small-scale industries make up the largest percentage of Mpwapwa District’s economy. In the Council, more than 80% of the workforce is still employed in the agricultural industry. The majority of farmers practice subsistence farming, which results in poor production in terms of both quantity and quality thus low revenue. In rural Wards of the District, crop production is a vital economic activity, followed by livestock rearing. Major food crops are maize, millet, beans, paddy, and sweet potatoes whereas major cash crops are groundnuts, onions, Sesame, and sunflower.

On the 14 and 15th of September, UNA Tanzania conducted training on rainwater harvesting, food preservation, and enhancing the crop value chain to 50 villagers from all the villages within Ngh’ambi Ward, Mpwapwa District. Day one of the training was dedicated to rainwater harvesting. The villagers were trained on effective means of trapping rainwater, conservation measures, costs & benefits of rainwater harvesting. This is an important aspect of enhancing climate resilience in the ward. The conserved water has the ability to remain available for usage and crop cultivation even during long periods of droughts. This reduces the distance and  time spent to fetch water thus avoiding risk of violence. This is crucial, especially in improving security for women as they are mostly in charge of collecting water in households.

Ms. Haika Simon, Climate Resilience Officer at UNA Tanzania displaying to the participants how to create a ground catchment systment for rain water harvesting.

Day 2 of the training was devoted to food preservation techniques and enhancing the crop value chain. The training focused on utilizing local, cost-effective methods that villagers can afford to preserve their food for consumption and to add value to their crops for business. This approach is particularly beneficial for small-scale farmers, as it can significantly increase their income. Apart from that, it ensures availability of food at household even during unfavourable seasons.

Christina Msanjila from Kazania Village on a feedback interview after the training.

“As a mother this training has helped me a lot. I am now aware of varous methods of rain water harvesting that I can use to ensure water availability at home for cooking, washing clothes, drinking and even to grow vegetables. To add up, the food preservation techniques and methods to add value to crops will help me to harvest nutritious crops with the best quality”, says Christina Msanjila from Kazania village.

UNA Tanzania is implementing the climate resilience project in Mpwapwa District which aims to pilot a 7-pillar regional resilience model in Tanzania to strengthen the ability of communities to cope with and regulate the effects of climate change. The 7 pillars model focuses on engaging the communities to drive their nature-based solutions which can help create sustainable living conditions in their villages. The 7 pillars are natural resources management and environmental sustainability; community health and water; governance and human rights-based approaches; economic empowerment; peace building, safety and security; infrastructure development as well as education empowerment. The project is conducted in partnership with IAS Kenya and LM in Tanzania.

On 13^th September 2023, UNA Tanzania facilitated a strategic advocacy meeting between CSOs & CBOs working within Mpwapwa District with duty bearers to propose recommendations aimed at enhancing climate resilience in the District.

Ms. Ummilkher Yassin, Advocacy and Communications Officer at UNA Tanzania facilitating the strategic advocacy session.

The meeting was attended by Hon. Noel K. Abel; Acting District Executive Director, Bahati D. Magumula; The District Community Development Officer, and included 25 participants including representatives from CSOs and CBOs such as HakiElimu, Federation of Associations of People With Disabilities (SHIVYAWATA), The International Small Group & Tree Planting Program (TIST), Sustainable Agriculture Tanzania (SAT), Mpwapwa Development Society, LEAD Foundation and Action Girls Foundation. The meeting began with facilitating a session on lobbying and advocacy, leading the participants to formulate a presentation of smart recommendations to propose to the duty barriers. The participants had an opportunity to present their recommendations followed by a constructive dialogue on how the recommendations can be implemented but also the responsibilities of the community towards building resilient communities in Mpwapwa. The key recommendations focused on;

• Enhancing awareness raising on climate change by focusing on the impacts, alternative means to combat, and resilient measures among the community
• Enforcing strict environmental protection laws and regulations
• Effective governance of all departmental budgets involved with the environment sector i.e. water, natural resources, land & agriculture departments

Ayubu Luhunga, representative from Mpwapwa Development Society presenting the recommendations to Hon. Noel K. Abel; Acting District Executive Director on behalf of the CSOs & CBOs.

Facilitating strategic dialogues between duty barriers and key community stakeholders like CSOs and CBOs is essential in order to lay the foundation for the community to have meaningful planned interactions with their duty barriers through facilitated procedures, this promotes accountability and enhances long-lasting change.

On 11^th September UNA Tanzania conducted The High-Level Multistakeholder Dialogue On The SDGS Summit, a pre-event ahead of the SDGs Summit. The theme of the dialogue was ‘Tanzania’s Readiness For Transformative Action Towards Achieving SDGs’. The main aim of the dialogue was to mobilize collective actions and promotion of high-impact initiatives in order to mark the beginning of a new phase of accelerated progress toward the Sustainable Development Goals with high-level political guidance on transformative and accelerated actions leading up to 2030. The dialogue brought together stakeholders from the Government, The UNRCO Office, the Private Sector, and Civil Societies in Tanzania for a transformative dialogue and forging commitments to escalate collective efforts towards achieving the SDGs.

The dialogue was graced by a keynote speech from the United Nations Resident Coordinator in Tanzania Mr. Zlatan Milsic, “I urge each of you to take this moment as an opportunity for a personal and collective reflection. The journey towards the SDGs is not just national or global, it is the journey of individuals, communities & nations united by a shared world vision”, he emphasized.

Mr. Zlatan Milisic, United Nations Tanzania Resident Coordinator presenting keynote speech during the dialogue

A stimulating panel discussion accompanied the dialogue, deliberating on fast-tracking SDGs in line with Leave No One Behind with panelists Ruth Minja from The National Bureau of Statistics, Nesia Mahenge; The Country Director of CBM Tanzania, Stephen Chacha; Co-Convener of The Tanzania Sustainable Development Platform and Marsha Yambi; The Executive Director of the UN Global Compact Tanzania Chapter.

The dialogue concluded with commitments and key action points from The Civil Societies in Tanzania;

• Improving capacities to collect, generate, and use of data. CSOs need to have proper data storage for future use and have someone who is responsible for data generation and storage.
• Enhance capacity building to local communities to monitor the implementation of SDGs by promoting the use of friendly language Swahili language, braille language, and picture/symbols
• Increase efforts to reduce extreme poverty in rural and urban areas among vulnerable social groups
• Recurring consultative and follow-up sessions involving CSOs, the Private Sector, Communities (through Social Accountability Monitoring – SAM), and Government stakeholders. These meetings will serve as essential forums for the systematic review of our progress, the exchange of best practices, and the proactive resolution of emerging challenges

INTRODUCTION

Established in 2010, the African Union Youth Volunteer Corps (AU YVC) is a premier continental youth leadership initiative that recruits, develops, and places young African professionals from all 55 AU Member States to work as professionals volunteers for a year.

ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA

Candidates must posses these criteria;

1. Citizen of an AU Member State living on the continent or in the Diaspora.
2. Aged 18 – 35 years (must be under the age of 35 upon completing 12 months service)
3. Have a post-secondary certified qualification(s) (TVET, Bachelor’s, Master’s etc.)
4. Available in 2023/24 to dedicate 12 (twelve) months for professional volunteer service.
5. Willing to live and work in another AU Member State.
6. Is proficient in at least one AU working language (Arabic, English, French, Portuguese, Swahili , Spanish).
7. Has at least one-year verifiable volunteering experience and one-year professional work
experience.

Do you have these skills?

Proficient computer skills (MS Word, Excel and Power Point)
•    Proficiency with e-mail and internet applications,
•    Good interpersonal skills
•    Ability to communicate both orally and in writing
•    Proficiency in one of the AU officials working languages (French, English, Portuguese, Arabic, Spanish, Kiswahili) and fluency in another AU language(s) is an added advantage

You want to apply? follow this process;

1. Visit the AU careers website; careers.au.int, click on the AUYVC post.
i.    If you are a registered user, log in
ii.   If you are not a registered user, create an account
2. Fill out your personal information and complete the application form
3. Attach the following documents:
i. Your updated professional CV (no longer than 3 pages)
ii. Bio page of your passport or national ID
iii. Certificate copy of your highest completed qualification (transcripts are not acceptable)
iv. Attach a letter of recommendation (not older than 2 years) attesting to your
leadership qualities (in the manifesto folder)
4. Attach your cover letter. In your cover letter please respond to the following questions:
i. Why do you want to become an African Union Youth Volunteer?
ii. What makes you the best candidate for AUYVC?
iii. What skills are you bringing to the AUYVC and your host organization?
5. Review and submit your application before: Tuesday September 19, 2023 11h59 p.m. EAT.
Please note:
i. Incomplete and late applications will not be considered
ii. Only successful applicants will be contacted
iii. Providing incomplete or incorrect information is ground for immediate disqualification

More information and the applicaton form is provided in this link:

https://jobs.au.int/The%20African%20Union%20Commiss/job/Ethiopia-African-Union-Youth-Volunteer-Corps-%28AU-YVC%29/777053502/

UNA Tanzania collaborated with Policy Forumfor the  Breakfast Debate in August focusing on the theme, “Towards Sustainable Development: Reflecting on the 2023 Tanzania Voluntary National Review (VNR) Report. The debate was conducted at the British Council Auditorium in Dar es Salaam with the aim of sharing feedback to stakeholders on what transpired during the High-Level Political Forum (HLPF) in July, deep diving into what Tanzania as a country reported on the progress of the Sustainable Development Goals and the Civil Society Organization’s engagement in the process ensuring no one is left behind.

Mr. Joseph Malekia from The National Planning Commission commenced by opening the debate with a presentation describing the entire VNR process to finally summarizing what was reported during the HLPF. He said that, “We are midway to 2030 and only 12% of the goals have been accomplished globally, this shows how much efforts is still required to achieve what we had set in 2015. For Tanzania it was confirmed during the forum that, there has been good progress in goals 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7,8, and 16 and relatively moderate progress in goals 1, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, and 17”.

Mr. Joseph Malekia from the National Planning Commission in The Ministry of Planning and Investments under the Prsident’s Office

The presentation was followed by a panel discussion composed of Reynad Maeda; The Co-Convener of The Tanzania Sustainable Development Platform (TSDP) and Executive Director at UNA Tanzania, Stephen Chacha, Co-Convener of  The Tanzania Sustainable Development Platform, Nesia Mahenge, Country Director at CBM International in Tanzania as well as Mr. Joseph Malekia. The panelists shared their experience and lesson learnt from the High-Level Political Forum. During the forum UNA Tanzania together with other members of the TSDP conducted a side event which deliberated on leveraging partnerships to promote meaningful participation in advancing Agenda 2030 by those most at risk. Apart from that UNA Tanzania’s Executive Director was a speaker in several side events including; a side event organized by the governments of Finland and Tanzania with the theme , “Localizing the SDGs: Transformative partnerships to accelerate achievement of the Global Goals at local level”, a side event conducted by the International Institute for Sustainable Development to examine What happens after a community completes a Voluntary Local Review to measure local achievement of the SDGs. On top of that the Director spoke at a VNR Lab conducted by the German Council for Sustainable Development to  share from a stakeholders perspective, how Tanzania VNR process embraced the Whole of Government,  Whole of Society approach.

Panelists from left; Joseph Malekia, Nesia Mahenge, Stephen Chacha and Reynald Maeda

After the panel discussion, the attendees had a chance to explore the subject in a couple of groups before being given the opportunity to share their opinions. Key take aways from the debate include;

• Translating the SDGs into local contexts & local languages is key for the localization of the goals and ensuring the local community is fully on board.
• Realization of the SDGs in Tanzania should not only rely on charitable source of finance. We should focus on unlocking new innovative sources of finance for the SDGssuch as climate finance
• Media involvement in the SDGs is of the essence, to capacitate them to relate reported news with SDGsis crucial in stimulating its implementation.
• Young people have the power to act and mobilize others hence meaningful youth engagement in the implementation of the SDGs is