Strømme Foundation – ELECAP Tanzania

In the Singida region of Tanzania, degraded soils and an unpredictable climate make it difficult for many families to make a living from farming. Through ELECAP, the Strømme Foundation will help build more resilient livelihoods, improve food security and create new opportunities for smallholder farmers and their families.

About the project

More than 65 percent of agricultural land in sub-Saharan Africa is degraded. In the Singida region of inland Tanzania, this means disappointing harvests, incomes that don't stretch far enough – and families who see no option but to pull their children out of school.

ELECAP (Enhancing Livelihoods and Education Outcomes through Commercial Agricultural Production) is a three-year programme designed to help 6,000 smallholder farmers in Iramba, Ikungi and Manyoni move out of subsistence farming and into climate-resilient, market-oriented systems. Seven in ten participants are women. Half are young people between 18 and 29 years old. In total, the project directly and indirectly reaches around 50,000 people.

The project builds on five years of documented experience from its predecessor programme ELCAP (2021–2026) and is implemented by the Strømme Foundation in partnership with local organisations.

How will Kavli Trust's funding be used?

Kavli Trust's grant of NOK 8 million over three years finances the core deliverables of the ELECAP programme. The funding covers training for 6,000 farmers in Climate Smart Agriculture – including the use of biochar, agroforestry with 30,000 Gliricidia trees, and conservation agriculture to restore soil fertility and resilience to climate variability.

The funding enables the establishment of six farmer-owned cooperatives (AMCOS) that provide collective market access, better prices and improved storage capacity. It also supports the launch of 150 youth-led agribusiness enterprises and skills development for around 750 young people.

Part of the budget is directed towards 30 school gardens and 300 kitchen gardens with accompanying nutrition education – interventions that directly affect children's diet, school attendance and learning outcomes. The project also includes a pilot programme for carbon credits based on biochar, which has the potential to open new income streams for farmers in the long term.

About the organisation

The Strømme Foundation is a Norwegian development organisation founded in 1976. It works to help families escape poverty and vulnerability through programmes in enterprise development, education and climate adaptation across Africa and Asia.

The Strømme Foundation is particularly known for its work with smallholder farmers, youth employment and market-oriented agriculture in low-income countries. The organisation has been active in Tanzania since its founding and has developed a broad network of local partners, including Amani Girls Organization (AGO) in Singida.

ELECAP is a direct result of the learning generated during five years of the previous programme ELCAP, funded by Norad. The Strømme Foundation approach integrates soil restoration, climate adaptation, market integration and nutrition into a single, coherent system – with impact documented through ongoing data collection and independent evaluation.