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Special Projects

Butiama Hills, Tanzania

Hillside forest restoration and transitioning villages to agroforestry

0 ha
restoration target
0 million
trees growing
0
communities involved
0
households participating
0
people benefiting

Location

Butiama district, Mara, Tanzania

Restoration approaches

Assisted Natural Regeneration; agroforestry

Project partners

GRA, Butiama District Council, Tanzania Forest Services, 5 village councils

Communities

Busegwe, Kigori, Mwikoro, Nyanza and Singu

Livelihoods

Agroforestry, fruit and timber/fuelwood trees, beekeeping

In partnership with GRA and five surrounding communities, we will restore a fully functional ecosystem through the assisted natural regeneration of over 3868 hectares of acacia woodlands.

Individual woodlots and agroforestry systems on 1600 smallholder farming households adjacent to the hills will reduce pressure on the forests and improve livelihoods.

Why and how we're working here

The Butiama hills in Mara, Tanzania have suffered serious deforestation and degradation through illegal and unregulated firewood harvesting, charcoal burning and grazing. This has led to the drying up of water sources, and the communities lack access to affordable and appropriate clean energy sources.

The areas surrounding the hills are an agricultural landscape formed by a mosaic of woodlots and limited tree canopies. Low productivity agriculture and a lack of community ownership of forests also contribute to the degradation of the landscape here.

These drivers of deforestation and forest degradation will be sustainably reversed through increased forest cover, self-sustaining community-based forest management groups, and forest-friendly diversified alternative livelihoods.

The project's impact on

people

Community forests with protected legal status will be created to improve the functioning of dried up water springs to restore the water catchment area. Individual woodlots and agroforestry systems on the areas adjacent to the hills will reduce pressure on the forests and improve the livelihoods of the local population.

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Who's funding the Butiama Hills project?

Progress reports