Context:

Duru Haitemba is a community forest around Duru ward ? Babati district in Northern part of Tanzania where thousands of people living there are reliant on the forests around them to survive. But deforestation has become increasingly common as people chop down trees for timber, to sell as firewood, and to clear grazing land for their animals amidst the existing binding land laws and by-laws. The community has long time been forced by law partial understanding as to why they need to conserve the forest and environment around them. The situation causes conflict of interest between the community and the government authority.

This project will be an effort to reduce deforestation and forest degradation, foster conservation and sustainable management of the forests. Also the project will improve the self-strengthening process for local communities to increase their participation in the development and policy dialogue. Community Based Forest Management (CBFM) will be considered as a means to deliver multiple outcomes such livelihood benefits, carbon sequestration, and biodiversity conservation.

During the project implementation, COSITA will give high priority the issue of gender equality and equity due to the reason that, the predominant systems of land ownership in Babati are governed by customary and collective land tenure systems. Most of the customary laws preclude women from access to or inheriting land despite their key role in enhancing food security.

2. About the Proponent:
Community Support Initiatives ? Tanzania (COSITA) is a local non ?governmental organization located in Babati Township, Mruki area. It informally started its work since January 2010 and was legally registered in Tanzania under NGO Act, 2002 in December 2010 with the objective to improve the livelihood of poor, marginalized and vulnerable communities in Tanzania Mainland.

The organization has a good experience on the issues of advocacy and capacity building as it has its previous projects which have been carrying out advocacy and capacity building for instance the ?Land Right project? funded by CARE international 2013-2016 focuses on the advocacy for Land rights, extension services provision by the duty bearers. Another similar project is women right to resource access and ownership in Babati Town funded by FCS.

The organization always integrate the issues of climate change/natural resources conservation and gender equality/equity trainings when implementing its projects as a part and parcel of the implemented activities so as to advocate for the issues of gender equality and strategies to overcome environmental destruction by applying adaptive measures.

3. Project?s Primary Objective:
Improved local community?s capacity on participatory conservation of the Duru Haitemba Forest in Babati District.

Main Objective:
Improved self-strengthening process of the Duru Haitemba Community forest management through institutional strengthening of the existing structures, advocacy skills and participatory planning processes for the use of available resources around the conserved area.

Specific objectives.
? To strengthen the 8 institutional capacities of Village governments, Wards leaders and 96 members of DuruHaitemba forest conservation committees for efficient and quality performance of their core functions towards sustainable conservation of the Duru Haitemba Community forest by Sept 2020.
? To facilitate 8 community participatory planning process for the use of available resources around the concerned forests areas by Sept 2020.
? To improve the knowledge of 120 members of Village governments, Wards leaders and Duru Haitemba forest conservation committees on gender and disabled people equality/equity and put in place climate change adaptation strategies towards Duru Haitemba forest conservation by September 2020.

4. Implementation Strategies:
? Participatory process of project implementation among local community, village and ward leaders, local existing structures like environmental committees, forest management committees, district council officials, political leaders/policy makers, and other interested stakeholders.
? The use of self ?strengthening process roadmap will effectively be utilized during the whole implementation period.
? Gender and climate change will be mainstreamed during implementation.

5. Project Sustainability Strategies:
? Full engagement of local communities to sustain the work initiated during project life time after the project period lapsed.
? Collaboration with District council officials from Environment and natural resources Unit will enable sustainability of all issues undertaken during project life time.
? Post monitoring by COSITA to ensure project sustainability.

6. Anticipated Project Results
i. 96 members of Village Natural Resources Management Committees from 8 villages are actively working and promoting JFM within the communities, with environmental governance system in place on sustainable basis by September 2020
ii. 1,200 people (600 women and 600 men) received tangible benefits from participation in the management of DuruHaitemba Forest Reserve by September 2020
iii. 120 village, ward leaders and forest management committee members are practicing Gender equality/equity and Climate change adaptation strategies by Sept 2020