Mratibu wa Program ya Biogesi Tanzania (TDBP), Cyprian Shila (kulia) akibadilishana na mawazo na mmoja ya watendaji wa Mkoa wa Njombe baada yakumalizika kwa semina ya wakulima wa kilimo hifadhi pamoja na biogesi.
Dr. Rehema Nchimbi(katikati), ambaye pia ni Mkuu wa Njombe akiongea na wakulima wakati wiki ya wakulima watatifi katika kilimo hifadhi na biogesi jana. Waliyeketi toka kushoto ni Mkuu wa Wilaya ya Waging'ombe, Frederick Mwakalebela na Mkuu wa Mradi Kilimo Hifadhi, Profesa Ndelilio Urio kutoka SUA.
Wakulima wakifuatilia hotuba ya mgeni rasmi Dkt. Rehema Nchimbi wakati wa wiki ya wakulima mkoani Njombe.
By Friday Simbaya, Njombe
Tanzania Domestic Biogas Program (TDBP) has said this year it will construct 4,000 biogas plants countrywide in the effort of reducing greenhouse gases emissions like methane (CH4) which is brought by cow dung.
According to the TDBP Country Director Cyprian Shila, the choice of biogas system depends on its cost, durability and ease of maintenance.
Shila made the statement on Friday during the conservation agriculture farmers’ week which was co-organized by Sokoine University of Agriculture (SUA) and TDBP.
He said that the production methane can only be reduced by investing biogas and conservation agriculture.
Other partners who were present during farmer’s week including Centre for Agriculture Mechanization and Rural Technology (CAMARTEC) and SVN a Dutch international cooperation which provides services in three sectors: Renewable Energy; Water Sanitation and Hygiene and Agriculture.
He said that there are at least 30 farmers in Njombe Region who are in the program of domestic biogas system and they have right to choose the system that best suits their pockets.
“Any farmer with one to three dairy cows housed in a zero grazing unit can collect enough cow dung for biogas production,” he said.
There must also be adequate water for mixing with animal waste, which is fed into the biogas digester to produce the gas.
He said that all biogas systems have three main components: a mixing chamber (or inlet), a digester and an expulsion chamber (or outlet) where the byproducts or bio-slurry is ejected from the digester.
He pointed out that in order to reduce the emission of methane we need more farmers to join the program so that we fight the fight together.
Tanzanian Domestic Biogas Program (TDBP), which is also involved in the project, biogas use has noticeably eased the lives of rural women and children who often bore the brunt of family responsibilities, for example, by collecting firewood.
According to Shila, biogas investment has also resulted in a changing perception of gender roles by involving women in preparing inputs for biogas.
"Women and men everybody should feel that they have a role to play, there's nothing like 'this is a woman's job,” confirmed Shila.
On his part, Ndelilio Urio, a conservation agriculture expert and professor at Sokoine University of Agriculture (SUA), the amount of urea in the slurry works better as a nitrogen supplement for the soil.
He said they have trained farmers on how to use bio-slurry (by product) as fertilizer, especially in their home gardens where they produce vegetables and maize," Urio said.
“Bio-slurry which is the by product of biogas as a lot of economic benefits to farmers including the applying in vegetable and fodders, in fish pond, in coffee, as animal feed and can be use an insect repellent, “said Prof, Urio.
He also urged agriculture extension officers not to seek back in the officers but visit farmers and teacher farmers on how fertilizer properly.
However, Njombe Regional Commissioner, Dr. Rehema Nchimbi was the guest of honour at the occasion said the only solution of environmental degradation is by doing conservation agriculture and investing in the use biogas.
She farmers to invest biogas technology will make rural farmers lives to be vibrant, hence poverty reduction.
In her case, Cosmas Mfugale from Nyumbanitu in Wanging’ombe District, Njombe Region said the dairy cattle have improved his family's nutrition by increasing their milk consumption.
And the income from selling milk to the local factory has also helped him to buy fish and meat.
As a result, his family has been able to double the amount of meals a day from two to four since cooking is now much easier by using biogas.
“When I was still using wood my wife could hardly prepare breakfast for our children before they went to school but now I have the comfort to do so,” Mfugale said.
Biogas technology was first established in Njombe in 2004 with the aim of making farmers' energy sources more environmentally friendly.
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