1 July 2006
Ibwera
Through Ibwera Area Development Programme (ADP), which began child sponsorship mid-2006, World Vision will work with ten villages – a total population of 24,000 people. The ADP is located in the Kagera region of Tanzania, to the east of Lake Victoria. Initial development activities will focus on health, education, food security and income generation.
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 Ibwera ADP
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Education
Although the ratio of students to teachers in the Ibwera area meets the standard set by the Tanzanian Ministry of Education (45:1), the ratio of students to classrooms is much higher. Schools are in poor condition and lack equipment, latrines and staff houses. A large number of children start school at later than seven years of age and few go on to secondary school.
World Vision builds and furnishes classrooms and teachers’ houses. It holds refresher training workshops for teachers and community meetings to emphasise the importance of education. A vocational training centre, being built by World Vision, will train teenagers in income-generating skills such as carpentry, mechanics and tailoring.
HIV and AIDS
AIDS has hit the Ibwera community hard. More than 1,700 of Ibwera’s children have lost at least one parent to AIDS and many more have been made vulnerable – as household resources are stretched to care for orphans or people with AIDS.
World Vision forms and trains committees of community volunteers to respond appropriately to HIV and AIDS. Primary school teachers are trained to use values-based life skills materials to prepare their students for life in a community ravaged by AIDS. AIDS clubs are formed in schools and students are trained to educate their peers in HIV-prevention. Leaders of community organisations are encouraged to inform their members about HIV-prevention and encourage them to respond to the needs of others.
Health
There are only two health centres to serve the population of Ibwera, and they lack staff, equipment and supplies. Villagers generally travel about 10km down the hills to collect water in the valley each day. Due to a lack of nutritious foods, malnutrition and anaemia are common. Other health problems include malaria, typhoid, diarrhoea and intestinal worms.
Ibwera ADP provides refresher training for government health workers and provides them with medicines and equipment. Two more health centres will be built. World Vision trains village health volunteers and traditional birth attendants in modern hygienic techniques. Mothers are educated about malaria and provided with insecticide-treated mosquito nets. A separately-funded project will address access to water.
Agriculture and income generation
Nearly all of the population are engaged in subsistence agriculture – bananas, maize, beans, and yams are the main food crops. A few households also grow coffee as a cash crop, but earn very little from its sale. In recent times crop yield has decreased due to poor farming techniques, disease and insect infestations.
The ADP forms farmers' groups to train community members in modern agricultural practices and encourage diversification of food and cash crops. It lends farmers improved seeds, agricultural inputs and stud animals. World Vision trains community-based organisations in income-generating activities, for example gardening, agriculture and tailoring, and lends them start-up capital at low interest rates.
Community leadership
World Vision works closely with local government to carry out development activities. A newly formed committee of local people is being trained by World Vision to prioritise, propose, manage and evaluate projects. Men, women, teenagers and children are represented on the committee and all are encouraged to play a part in the development work.
Sustainable development
It is envisaged that by September 2019 the community will be resourced and able to continue managing development initiatives without World Vision’s direct assistance. We will keep you updated on the community’s progress.
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