Tanzanian research report

This is a report of a study undertaken by Citizens Global Platform (CGP) in Tanzania on the marginalized voices on climate change policy processes. Similar studies have been carried out in Brazil, Finland and India. The reports from the four countries will be compiled together to give an international perspective to the challenges and proposals on the subject under study

The report has been prepared to assist CGP and other stakeholders working with marginalized voices on climate change in coming up with practical ways of engaging marginalized voices in UNFCCC and other related international processes
Main question used for the study

The main question this study is addressing "What are the biggest challenges and opportunities for civil society and other actors in Tanzania on raising the opinions and voices of the marginalized people into national and international UNFCCC decision-making processes?"

Geographical coverage
The study covered Tanzania mainland and Zanzibar. The study looked at both the national level, regional level and district level. The geographical locations that were covered during field work are Dar es Salaam, Pemba, Unguja, Kigoma, Mara, Singida, Kilimanjaro, Lindi, Coast region and Mbeya.

Climate Change in Tanzania
Tanzania is expected to experience an increase of 2oC - 4oC by 2100. These changes in temperature are expected to have an impact on the rainfall patters, distribution and intensity. Tanzania's vulnerability to climate change is based on to two factor. One , Tanzania lies in the region that is expected to have severe impact due to climate change - as noted above-, on the other hand the country is ill prepared to address the impact that climate change will have on its population and resources.
Based on the Tanzania national adaptation plan (2003) and Tanzania national adaptation plan of action (2006) the key sectors that will be affected include agriculture, water, energy, settlements, health, forestry and wetlands, wild life, tourism, industry and others.

Marginalized groups are the most vulnerable
Climate change is already having a significant impact among the Marginalized groups - women, disabled, rural and urban poor, youth. etc. In recent years, severe weather (prolonged droughts) affected Tanzania in 2005 causing severe hunger, malnutrition and also deaths especially among the rural poor -who depend on rain for crop production. Most of the Marginalized groups are totally dependent on agriculture both for subsistence and as a source of income.

Policy and Legal framework
Tanzania government has taken some steps in addressing climate change in both mitigation and adaptation. Tanzania is party to the Kyoto protocol and participates in the UNFCCC negotiations and processes. The National Adaptation plan (NAP) of 2003 and the National adaptation plan of action (NAPA) of 2006 guide Tanzania's efforts in addressing climate change.

Tanzania is actively engaged in the UNFCCC process. A committee has been formed to spearhead the implementation of the NAP and also to lead Tanzania engagement in the UNFCCC processes. This committee involves representatives from Government, academia and civil society. This Committee is however inactive and does not hold its meetings

There is no direct participation of Marginalized groups in UNFCCC through the existing government structure. Lawyer Environmental Action Team (LEAT) are currently the CSOs representatives to the UNFCCC process but since the committee has been dormant no useful work has been done so far.

CSOs activities on climate change
There are many civil society actors in Tanzania working in different sectors. Many however lack institutional capacity and financial sustainability to undertake large scale programs. There are very few CSOs that work directly with climate change or that have climate change as a component in their program. There are however many CSOs especially at the local level that work on environmental protection. There are also many working with farmers, pastoralist and fishing communities helping them improve their productivity by providing training, equipment and supplies, collective bargaining and micro credit.

The CSOs work on climate change in Tanzania is largely uncoordinated. There are initiative underway to document extensively what work is being done by CSOs on climate change being undertaken by the World Bank. There is also a loose CSOs network (CSOs climate change committee) on climate change that has been established/ revived and will work to build up to the UNFCCC Cop 15. The network has a membership of both local and international NGOs. This network has great potential to grow into a sustainable forum for CSOs in Tanzania to engage with climate change.
CSOs working with vulnerable groups on Climate Change

Many CSOs work with Marginalized groups including women, young people, orphans, disabled, elderly as well as urban and rural poor. Their activities range from provision of training in various skills, providing micro credit, provision of health services, shelters and emergency food. They also work with sanitation, environmental conservation, education support for orphans and poor families and promoting human rights. Climate change is still a new topic in Tanzania and many actors working with marginalized group are yet to include it as a priority in their interventions.

Important gaps identified in the existing participation framework for participation
i. Lack of public awareness and understanding of climate change and the significance of the UNFCCC process:
ii. Lack of an inclusive and open forum for the public and other stakeholders to engage with the UNFCCC processes within Tanzania.
iii. Lack of a broad multi stakeholders coordination mechanism addressing climate change in Tanzania
i. Low priority placed on the agenda of climate change among local actors and advocacy groups.
ii. Lack of sufficient technical capabilities, sufficient research and monitoring mechanism on the issues of climate change among key actors to build a case for Marginalized groups.
iii. Poor cooperation between government, scientists and civil society engaging with the UNFCCC processes.
iv. Lack of emphasis on climate change adaptation for Tanzania compared to climate change mitigation.
v. Lack of sufficient data and research on climate change and marginalized groups
vi. Deliberate exclusion of CSOs by government from certain policy processes.

Main challenges of promoting marginalized Voices
i. Most actors working with Marginalized groups lack information and knowledge on climate change.
ii. Most actors working with Marginalized lack advocacy and research skills to enable them build a case for Marginalized.
iii. Lack of policy engagement among the actors working with Marginalized groups in fear of getting into conflict with the government and leaders.
iv. Lack of sufficient resources to reach a large population they have to serve since many live in very remote villages and islands.
v. Competing priorities among the Marginalized as they struggle to get their ends meat.
vi. Diversity of culture calls for multidimensional approaches to community mobilization and awareness building.
vii. Politics interfere with programming. Some communities are not responsive to anything perceived to come from an opposing political party.
viii. The challenge of changing cultural practices and habits among Marginalized communities
ix. Most Marginalized communities are very religious. In Tanzania the main religions are Christianity and Islam.

Bridging the gap and thoughts on framework and tools
There are challenges that must be addresses to enable Marginalized voices to engage with the policy debate on climate change. These include improving
i. Cooperation with Government
ii. Awareness building
iii. Invest on creating and utilizing policy space
iv. Access to climatic research information and data
v. Invest on creating and utilizing policy space
vi. Access to climatic research information and data
Proposed participation Model/ framework
The proposed framework than can ensure greater participation of Marginalized voices in climate change policy involves three level consultation process. Level 1: Grass root engagement to involve Local government, Researchers, Civil society organizations and Politicians. Level 2: National level to include Regional Multi-stakeholders forums, National Multi stakeholders forum, Government UNFCCC Process, Politicians and Private Sector

Proposed model for CGP
At regional level : Organizing regional multi stakeholder forums focusing on Marginalized voices. At national level: Organize National multi stakeholder forums in collaboration with other actors to strengthen engagement of Marginalized voices by including representatives from local level and showcasing videos, testimonies and case studies on the plight of marginalized voices. At international level: Lobby to be part of the official government delegation, participate in CSO events for the UNFCCC, using videos, publications and inclusion of Marginalized in the delegation to UNFCCC sessions.

Some identified tools that can work best for CSOs working with Marginalized
The tools identified include those suggested by the stakeholders interviewed and those that have been used by CGP and other actors.

Tools to reach the Marginalized voices with information and awareness
i. Using of radio and TV programs:
ii. Village meetings
iii. Clubs and interest groups especially for youth
iv. Community based organizations, cooperative societies, district and regional CSOs networks:
v. Communication materials and publications.
vi. Interactive workshops and seminars
Tools for Marginalized group participation in UNFCCC
i. Documenting voices through short films.
ii. Opinion gathering sessions with Marginalized.
iii. Including Marginalized in delegation to UNFCCC.
iv. Documenting case studies.