Engineering Services for the Tanzania Irrigation and Rural Roads Infrastructure Project
CDM Smith (via their subsidiary CDM Constructors Inc.) was contracted by USAID/Tanzania (on an A&E IQC) to provide engineering services for the Technical Assistance to Support the Development of Irrigation and Rural Roads Infrastructure Project in support of the objectives of the Feed the Future (FtF) Initiative. FtF is a U.S. Government effort which aims to address the root causes of global hunger by sustainably increasing agricultural productivity to meet the demand for food, supporting and facilitating access to strong markets, increasing incomes for the poor so they can meet their food and other needs, and reducing under-nutrition.
With this renewed emphasis on agriculture as the driver of food security and economic growth, increased importance is placed on developing effective and sustainable interventions and accurately accounting for results and development impacts. To this end, the project will enhance agricultural productivity through the expansion of irrigation potential and market access by reducing transport costs for farm inputs and products with the goal of increasing Tanzania's competitiveness in domestic and regional markets.
Activity Description
Dakawa Rice Farm is a pump-fed, existing 2,000 ha rice farm near to Dakawa village, on the Wami River in the region of Morogoro, central Tanzania. Mgongola Irrigation Scheme is also in the Morogoro region and is a proposed irrigated rice scheme of approximately 600 ha in area, to be gravity fed through a network of canals from the Mkindo river. Both schemes feed ultimately from the Wami-Ruvi River basin.
The objective of the Irrigation Infrastructure Component is to improve the productivity of the agricultural sector particularly for irrigated rice and horticulture through the rehabilitation of existing schemes and the development of new areas. The plan is to start with the rehabilitation of smaller schemes before undertaking the program in larger schemes. USAID/Tanzania plans to improve/add 2,600 ha in irrigated area. The target goal is to double rice yields and increase paddy production in these areas. See item 8 for more information on the location.
USAID/Tanzania has identified irrigated rice as a priority value chain with maize and horticultural products as important secondary value chains. This prioritization of value chains is based on the potential to enhance agricultural sector growth while addressing food insecurity, malnutrition, and poverty. The project – advisory role to local government bodies for new irrigation projects in the Southern Growth Corridor of Tanzania (SAGCOT) will complement other interventions in the USAID/Tanzania portfolio that will address the production, marketing, and processing of these priority commodities.
