The road to Kibuka clings to the mountainside, a winding ribbon of gravel and red clay cutting through misty forests. There are no guardrails--just sheer drops into a sea of green. Occasionally, a weathered pickup or motorbike emerges from the fog, making a careful descent from the village above.
As the road tops the final ridge, Kibuka comes into view: a steep hillside dotted with moving slowly among rows of bean crops.
At the centre of this activity is Molissia Mbiki, 38, a determined farmer and leader of the Kibuka Women's Cooperative. She moves with quiet authority, inspecting each plant, applying a natural brown spray to keep pests at bay.
For years, Molissia and her fellow cooperative members battled relentless challenges: low yields, destructive pests like the legume pod borer and caterpillars, and the punishing trek down the mountain to reach distant markets.
"You've seen how hard it is to get here," Molissia says. "We could barely grow enough to sell, let alone repay our loans. And the transport costs? They nearly broke us."
That began to change a year ago, when the cooperative joined MVIWATA--Mtandao wa Vikundi vya Wakulima Tanzania--a national network uniting smallholder farmers in Tanzania, to strengthen their voice and improve livelihoods. Through the Baridi Sokoni Food Systems Transformation Project, funded by the Global Agriculture and Food Security Program (GAFSP) and supervised by the African Development Bank, the women of Kibuka received hands-on training in sustainable agriculture: crop spacing, pest control, composting, and soil enrichment with organic matter.
But the change didn't stop at the farm gate. In Mvomero District, where Kibuka is located, MVIWATA also rehabilitated the local market, making it easier for traders to access remote production zones.
This work is part of a broader effort to strengthen horticultural value chains, creating new opportunities for women and youth while boosting local incomes.
"What we are witnessing in Kibuka is not just improved yields--it is a powerful story of resilience, leadership, and local innovation, " Philip Boahen, Coordinator, Global Agriculture and Food Security Program (GAFSP), at the African Development Bank
"When women farmers like Molissia are equipped with the right tools and opportunities, they don't just transform their farms--they transform entire communities. This is the kind of impact GAFSP was created to deliver."
For Molissia, the impact is personal and deeply meaningful.
"All the women here are grateful. I've paid off my loan, and I even managed to pay my son's school fees in Morogoro. I'm proud--and hopeful that we'll keep growing."
The Food Systems Supply Services in Rural Tanzania (F3SRT) - "Baridi Sokoni" - was selected through a competitive call for proposals for Producer Organization-led projects in the context of the COVID-19 global pandemic in 2021.
The Bank's Boards of Directors approved the - "Baridi Sokoni" project with a $2.85 million additional financing grant in 2024.
MVIWATA's approach goes beyond training. It nurtures an entrepreneurial ecosystem where smallholder farmers access finance, inputs, and markets. Through collective marketing, peer learning, and governance support, the network empowers cooperatives to scale their impact. Its emphasis on agroecology, gender inclusion, and local ownership ensures that rural transformation is not only sustainable--but led by the farmers themselves.
In Kibuka, and in other villages in the Mvemoro district, these cooperatives carry with them the promise of a brighter future.
