Sustainable agriculture and land. By Theresia Steven Ndomba Executive Chairperson of Women and Environmental Association, Tanzania, 1999/2000 Africa has to recognise the women's contribution to the development of African's countries. Most of rural women play major role in food production and ensure food security in household level in the community, and surplus for the sales for paying children school fees, health care and other important needs. It is also the responsibility of African women to take care for the husband and priority given to all nutritional foods rather than children and any other in the family. From the point of view women are most sufferers from malnutrition during pregnance, the situation which takes part nearly to the whole rural areas in African countries, no matter whether she belongs to which tribe. In conclusion, African female farmers carry 80% of total production of agriculture products. Tanzania agriculture is predominantly small scale subsistence farming with 46,000 sq. km (93.4 percent) of the farmers and only 6.6 percent managed by male-dominated commercial farmers. There 730 large farms belong to government-owned parastatals. According to the 1988 Tanzania census, women were more than 11.2 million in country with the population of 23.2 million people. The women therefore are sizeable constituency. But their importance can not be reduced to sheer numbers they are indeed playing a much bigger role in the social economic development of the country. The study found also, that, women in Tanzania were working for 3069 hours a year on the average compared to the men whose average was 1929 hours. Most farmers, especial rural women use only physical labour and the hand hoes. Only 10% of cultivated land is worked by animal power, 6% use mechanical power. Of the 10,501,000 economically active people in Tanzania 78.5% are in crop production the majority of whom 56% are women. Mixed farming is performed by 761,000 people 44% of whom are women. Women usually control this sector, but even when men are involved, they tend to sell all the product even where such crops (sweet potatoes, maize and vegetables) could be used as a part of family food. The gender imbalanced workload is another major factor contributing to sustainable agriculture. * Women farmers are allocated to less fertile marginal lands which makes it difficult to produce enough food crops. * Lack of technological support for women's numerous roles reduce the level of efficiency and production :- * Women's relative lack of decision -making and power management of resources * Hostile environments, characterised by drought, floods etc. * Lack of storage facilities and preservation technology and limited education and skills which result in women failing to produce enough food or allocate adequate funds for food items. * The domineering nature of some males within patriarchal systems contributes to women's lack of motivation to work hard * Rural men tend to ignore women's cash needs, even where the income from cash crops is substantial. * The majority of planners are men and they do have been socialised to take for granted the work done by the women. The following are difficulties facing by rural women which hindering women farmers to sustainable agriculture. * Ignorance * Low level of productivity and poor access to resources, information and communication * Structure of decision making in village level assembly * Tradition and taboos which bar women give first priority to men in decision making. * Decision of men to work the land or leave it in favour of migration * Policy designed to credit acquisition e.g. valuable items, land tittle deed etc. makes difficult to be fulfilled by women particularly in rural areas. Recommendations * Train women in Sustainable livelihood ,Capacity building programme, Community empowerment programme, hostile environments. * NGOs dedicated with women affairs has to work close with the community on problem identification, planning process, monitoring, evaluation and implementation of projects. * Government & NGOs has to provide/ strengthen education on sustainable agriculture to the women farmers with more emphases on distortion of bad traditional and taboos to make sure the community is absolutely educated * Government has to consult the NGOs involving on gender issue when allocating communal development programme and provide agriculture experts. * Government and NGOs has to provide managerial skill to the women in the community through training of their leaders and participating on workshops, seminars, tour, meetings etc. * Government has to allocate/ establish agriculture resources shops near women farmers (rural areas) and provide loans to the women wherever there is need, on affordable rate, rules and regulations. References:- * Women in Tanzania, by Ophelia Mascarenhas & Marjorie Mbilinyi * Women information centre (Ministry of Community Development, Children and Women Affairs). * Environmental Newsletter, by B.M. Cheche & Haji Juma Haji.