A BRIGHT FUTURE FOR A WOMAN FARMING COFFEE
IN TANZANIA
Dorothy Masaki finds new inspiration & opportunities
Dorothy Masaki is a 54 year-old wife and mother of six who began farming over 35 years ago as a young woman working on her father’s farm with her parents and her siblings. After years of hard work Dorothy joined Solidaridad’s Practice for Change: Coffee Resilience Programme in East Africa, and the success of her coffee farm is leading to new opportunities for herself, her family and her friends.
“I am hopeful for a brighter future as a coffee farmer."
When she married in 1990, Dorothy Masaki found herself involved in a family business—her husband’s coffee farm. Like for many other smallholder farmers, theirs was a journey filled with trial and error. Pests and diseases, including coffee berry disease (CBD), brought additional challenges for the couple, who struggled to make their farm profitable and sustainable. She says:
“Our farm’s cost of production declined sharply due to increased pesticide use. Limited knowledge on proper pesticide application significantly increased our exposure to harmful chemicals resulting in health complications such as eye irritation”
In 2014 the struggle became too great and she gave up on coffee farming.
Less than five years later, in 2018, Dorothy started to realize that coffee had become a high-value commodity. She renewed her coffee farming efforts, and only one year later, with the help of Solidaridad's Practice for Change programme, she was selected as a promoter farmer by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands, a funder of Solidaridad's PfC Coffee project since its start.
Dorothy takes a closer look at her coffee harvest.
Dorothy takes a closer look at her coffee harvest.
"Solidaridad, through Practice for Change, equipped me and 15 other promoter farmers with knowledge on good coffee farming practices - pruning, pests and disease management, proper spacing, coffee farm establishment, proper fertilizer application, coffee picking, and intercropping. We also received training on financial management and literacy, Village Savings and Loans Associations (VSLA) and on- and off-farm diversification.”
Training and practical demonstrations provided by the Tanzania Coffee Research Institute (TaCRI) enabled Dorothy to revive her coffee business. As she says, “My farm’s production rose from 70 kilos in 2020 to 410 kilos 2022 and is projected to reach 2000 kilos upon maturity of the newly established coffee trees.”
It's worth noting that coffee is a seasonal crop. In response, Dorothy has embraced diversification. She currently grows maize and bananas, while also keeping chickens, pigs, goats and dairy cattle. She produces food for her household’s consumption and sells the surplus to generate a regular income. Diversification, she says, has allowed her to exploit both the local and international markets. Additionally, Dorothy has joined a women’s business group that establishes micro-businesses, which share profits among group members.
A BRIGHT PRESENT
A BRIGHTER FUTURE
Dorothy Masaki is succeeding as a farmer. Participating in Solidaridad's Practice for Change project, she remains optimistic about her prospects. With her growth target of 2,000 kilos of coffee, she plans on even more coffee plantings, while also acquiring a water tank to improve water conservation and irrigation during the dry seasons.
Through her own dedicated efforts, Dorothy has launched a successful coffee farming business, works to support her household, and provides for her children's education. The future looks bright!
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