Meeting of the Minds: Sharing knowledge across PCI’s school feeding programs

Different languages and long distances often make supporting each other and sharing best practices across programs difficult. To overcome these barriers and help foster intra-organizational learning, PCI recently brought together nearly 30 staff members from four different countries for the 2nd Annual Applied Learning Workshop (ALW) in Tanzania. The primary purpose of the gathering was…

Read More

A Run to Remember in Tanzania

PCI joins 2019 Serengeti Safari Marathon to promote school meals program Some people run for medals. Others run for sport. On Nov. 16, staff from PCI Tanzania ran the Serengeti Safari Marathon to raise awareness about taking hunger out of the classroom and feeding children’s dreams instead. A total of 44 staff members participated in…

Read More

Growing Healthy Food, Connections through School Gardens

When Peter Masaju started a school garden at Suguti A Primary School in Musoma District, Tanzania, he planted the seeds for more than just healthy, homegrown vegetables. He also created an opportunity for parents to feel more rooted in their children’s day-to-day school experiences. “For the past seven years, I have not witnessed such a…

Read More

Is It Too Late for Systems Thinking? Lessons Learned on Adopting a Market Systems Approach Mid-Program

By Karla Yoder, Global Communities Economic Development/Workforce Specialist This blog was originally published on Marketlinks.org Agribusiness Investment for Market Stimulation (AIMS) is a U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA)-funded initiative to promote trade in Kenya, Tanzania and Malawi by increasing access to finance and markets for agricultural small and medium enterprises (A-SMEs). AIMS was not initially…

Read More

Meet Tanzania’s Safe Water Superhero

Yvonne Mwakisyala understands firsthand how access to clean water and sanitation is critical to keeping girls healthy, safe and on track with their education. “My mum makes a joke that I hated dirty floors so much as a child that I never crawled and moved straight to walking,” says Yvonne, who serves as a construction…

Read More

Turning the Tide on Unsanitary School Conditions in Tanzania

Children should not have to choose between their health and their education. Yet, one-third of schools worldwide lack access to clean water and basic hygiene facilities, putting students at risk of disease or forcing them to miss class altogether. Like many parts of Tanzania, the Mara Region continues to experience the challenge of inadequate school…

Read More

Paying Success Forward, One Book at a Time

Kimmy Brooke understands firsthand how a network of empowered women can change a life. Before she became a successful entrepreneur, author and leadership coach, Brooke remembers the isolation she felt as a single mom, struggling to move forward with a stagnant bottom line. “I found myself at the age of 40 divorced and turned upside…

Read More

Never Too Early to Learn: Engaging Parents as Teachers in Tanzania

For years, Juma Mazaba Motoka has confidently served as the head of a small sub-village in Tanzania. But only recently did the 40-year-old father come to embrace another leading role. “Earlier I thought the activity of teaching children was only for teachers who are well-trained and psychologically prepared to teach young children at school,” Juma…

Read More

Facilitating a More Enabling Environment

This post was written by Karla Yoder, Economic Development Specialist at Global Communities and originally appeared on Feed the Future Agrilinks As market systems development practitioners, we take a holistic approach to project implementation. Our value chain projects address market constraints at many levels including within the enabling environment. However, the focus of our facilitation…

Read More

Enterprising Africa: Where Strong Systems Boost Business

Enterprising Africa: Where Strong Systems Boost Business By David A. Weiss, President and CEO of Global Communities  |  This article originally appeared in the Huffington Post. This year in Tanzania, a business-to-business forum brought together nine buyers and processors, 15 sellers of non-refined sunflower oil and oil seeds, and 14 representatives from two agricultural cooperatives.…

Read More

Building Small Agribusinesses in East Africa

Building Small Agribusinesses in East Africa Agribusiness Investment for Market Stimulation (AIMS) is a five-year initiative of Global Communities to bolster trade in key agricultural sectors, grains, pulses, dairy, and horticulture in Kenya, Tanzania and Malawi by increasing access to financing and markets for small and medium-sized agribusinesses. AIMS is funded by the U.S. Department…

Read More

Combating Food Insecurity in Kenya

Combating Food Insecurity in Kenya Earlier this month, the Government of Kenya declared a drought emergency, placing the number affected by food insecurity at more than 2.7 million. With maize production down by more than 99%, rural farming communities and pastoralists have been severely affected. Global Communities’ Agribusiness Investment for Market Stimulation (AIMS) program is…

Read More