USAID Tuhifadhi Maliasili (Preserve Natural Resources) Activity Monthly Report April 2024

The Activity empowered communities in five villages across Ruaha Rungwa-Katavi and Ruaha Rungwa-Inyonga corridors by securing their land rights through the issuance of Certificates of Customary Right of Occupancy (CCROs). The Activity also supported the development of Land Use Plans (LUPs) in these villages, advancing them to stage 4. To further augment these efforts, the Activity, through a grant to the Association for Development of the Protected Areas (ADAP), is in the process of finalizing LUPs in these villages up to stage 5. The USAID Tuhifadhi Maliasili (Preserve Natural Resources) Activity supported 4 staff from ADAP and 3 District Land Officers from Chunya, Itigi, and Sikonge to Lawyers’ Environmental Action Team (LEAT), a USAID implementing partner with experience in LUP and land rights. LEAT has been working in 18 villages through USAID's Resilient Communities Governance Project to develop LUPs and issue CCROs. During the learning visit, participants received practical training on the Systematic Village Land Registration Model, use of the MAST application, and LEAT's strategy for joint registration. The Activity also procured and distributed equipment to support conservation efforts in Muheza District Council, including first aid kits for seven Village Natural Resources Committees (VNRCs), a motorcycle for the District Forest Officer (DFO) for monitoring and enforcement of laws and bylaws related to biodiversity conservation, and computer equipment for the DFO office. Similarly, the Activity procured equipment for Ifakara Town Council, including first aid kits for three VNRCs, six tablets for wildlife collection by Village Game, and a motorcycle for the District Game Officer (DGO) for supporting enforcement of laws and bylaws related to biodiversity conservation. The USAID Tuhifadhi Maliasili (Preserve Natural Resources) Activity supported the Tanzania National Business Council (TNBC) Technical Working Groups for Forestry and Tourism/Wildlife to discuss Public-Private Partnership (PPP) efforts aimed at promoting sustainable investment practices and combating wildlife crime and Human-Wildlife Conflicts (HWCs) in areas of connectivity. The meetings were chaired by the Permanent Secretary (PS) for the Ministry of Natural Resources and Tourism (MNRT), and attended by key stakeholders such as the Director of Forest and Biodiversity at the MNRT, the Executive Director of the Tanzania Tourist Board, and representatives from Swiss (T) Limited and the Hotels Association of Tanzania. The PS-MNRT appreciated the ongoing support from the USAID Tuhifadhi Maliasili (Preserve Natural Resources) Activity for facilitating PPP-led efforts in securing, protecting, and sustaining wildlife corridors and engaging the private sector to support communities to establish and sustain wildlife conservation. The PS-MNRT also informed participants about the Government's ongoing efforts to collaborate with various partners to secure wildlife corridors, including the Activity's priority corridors. The USAID Tuhifadhi Maliasili (Preserve Natural Resources) Activity supported the Tanzania Private Sector Foundation (TPS) to organize regional PPP dialogues to discuss opportunities and challenges hindering PPP-led efforts to promote sustainable investment practices, reduce wildlife crime, and HWCs in Kwakuchinja Amani-Nilo, Ruaha Rungwa-Katavi, and Ruaha Rungwa-Inyonga corridors. The dialogues discussed the following issues: reducing HWC through demarcating and protecting wildlife migratory connectivity, timely payment of 65% of Wildlife Management Area (WMA) revenues, and tariff barriers affecting the development of community ecotourism in places including the East Usambara Mountains (Amani-Nilo corridor). The Activity also supported the mentorship of 8 local media outlets to improve their reporting on biodiversity conservation and key conservation issues within the three corridors of Kwakuchinja, Amani-Nilo, and Nyerere-Selous-Udzungwa. The media outlets engaged were Korogwe FM, Pambaluko FM, Pwani Press Club Blog, and Arusha Press Club Blog. The mentorship involved individual field visits as part of continued mentorship of the trained journalists, guiding journalists on conservation issues to observe and develop a cloud-based database of biodiversity. The USAID Tuhifadhi Maliasili (Preserve Natural Resources) Activity supported the National Land Use Plan Commission (NLUPC) Stakeholders Workshop, which took place from April 23-24, 2024, in Dodoma Region. The workshop aimed to discuss the National Land Use Plan (NLUP) and its implementation, and to provide a platform for stakeholders to share experiences and share experiences on land use planning and management. The workshop was attended by key stakeholders, including the Permanent Secretary (PS)