Sustainable rural food systems for poor and vulnerable people need to be locally adapted to enhance food security. This requires participatory action research that considers the entire food value chain (FVC). This paper presents an assessment of the feasibility and potential success of upgrading strategies (UPS) for enhancing food security based on a study that was part of a larger participatory research project in two regions of Tanzania. The authors present the results relating to natural resource management and crop production. The results for natural resources show that enhanced soil water management was rated as high for the semi-arid Dodoma region. For the Morogoro region, the experts favoured soil fertility-improving UPS, such as conservation agriculture and agroforestry. Assessments of food production for both regions indicated the importance of intercropping, manure input, pest and disease control and cover crops. Assessments differed greatly between the two different climatic regions, and to a lesser extent between the nationality of the experts and their gender. This highlights the importance of including different South-North and female-male awareness in assessments. Implementation feasibility assessments of UPS indicated that the most suitable approaches were rainwater harvesting for semi-arid and conservation agriculture for subhumid regions respectively. Local and/or regional stakeholders and experts should be involved in developing and assessing site-adapted UPS for enhancing Tanzanian FVCs.

Food security is one of the main goals of rural poor people. To enhance food security in this context, participatory action research can help to ensure sustained success while considering entire food value chains (FVC). This paper assesses the feasibility and potential success of upgrading strategies (UPS) as well as their assessment criteria as developed by German and Tanzanian agricultural scientists. The results form part of a larger participatory research project conducted in two climatically representative regions of Tanzania: semi-arid Dodoma and subhumid Morogoro. This paper presents the findings with respect to food processing, waste management and bioenergy, along with income generation and market participation. Assessments on other components of the FVC, including natural resource management, crop production and consumption, are reported by Graef et al (2015). The assessments for food processing revealed preferences for preservation techniques, oil extraction processes and food storage devices for the semi-arid region. In contrast, in the subhumid region, the experts favoured food storage devices and preservation techniques. Assessments of waste management and bioenergy UPS for both regions indicated the importance of animal feed from crop residues, crop residues as mulch and compost from food waste, although with somewhat different priorities. Assessments on income generation and markets in both regions revealed preferences for savings and credit cooperatives and communication techniques, but also indicated that warehouse receipt systems and guarantee systems had a high impact. Assessments differed between the two different climatic regions, and to some extent also between the nationality of experts 180

The number of rural poor has been reported to rise in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) while per capita food consumption in the region is on the decline and food insecurity has been much embedded. Thus, knowing upgrading strategies (UPS) to be used in making a living and would have great chance of benefiting majority hence provide solutions to poverty, food insecurity and malnutrition. This paper assesses and compares the views of local stakeholders and agricultural experts in terms of prioritizing food securing UPS along food value chains (FVC). Data and information have been collected in a highly participatory process so as to develop an approach and experience in Tanzania regions to support poor people in rural areas to upgrade their position in viable FVC. Local stakeholders' definition of food security rely on food availability component, hence this paper centers on two major FVC components such as natural resources and crop production for maize and millet subsectors in Morogoro and Dodoma regions of Tanzania, respectively. Given natural resources, agricultural experts favor soil improving upgrading strategies in Morogoro and water management in Dodoma, whereby, local stakeholders in both regions prefer farm inputs related UPS for improving soil fertility (seed varieties improvement and fertilizer use). There is no significant mismatch of views for production component apart from differences on ranks. Stakeholders in both regions prefer use of improved crop varieties, pests and diseases control and new livestock management including having village land use planning. It is recommended that satisfactory participation of local stakeholders should be considered during testing stage of FVC upgrading strategies, including packing these innovations to suit local conditions and finally empower all potential actors for successful dissemination and outreach.

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