ORGANIZATIONAL PROFILE

 

1.         INTRODUCTION

CMMUT an acronym for Chama cha Mazingira na Maendeleo kwa Umma Tanzania “Association for Environment and Community Development” is a registered non-governmental, non-profit and a charitable Organization that was started and registered in 1999 and got its compliance at the Vice President’s office by June 2005.

Our Offices are located in one Saadallah Building floor number one room 6 along Old Dar es Salaam road just opposite National Insurance office in the Morogoro Municipality.

 

The Organization was found primarily to address issues of deteriorating forests, water catchments and the general environment and health hazards caused by dirty and polluted environment which requires comprehensive and coordinated efforts including participatory actions for the same.

 

2.         MISSION & VISSION and ADMINISTRATIVE STRUCTIVE OF CMMUT

            2.1       VISSION

                        We envisage increased living standards and good health for everyone.

 

2.2              MISSION

To improve peoples threshold and health through environmental conservation and cleanliness.

 

3.         AIM/GOAL

The main goal of the organization is to create awareness and build capacities of all inhabitants whenever possible in view of improving their sanitation and also improving forests as well as conserving biodiversity for sustainable development.

 

4.         OBJECTIVES AND ACTIVITIES

            Since its inception; CMMUT had two objectives in mind:

 

• Ø  To improve the deteriorating forests and conserve the environmental biodiversity for sustainable development.

 

• Ø  To ensure environmental cleanliness and sanitation so as to curb the spread of communicable diseases and eradication of malaria.
• Ø  The above objectives would only be attained through building capacities and creating awareness of the people so that they participate thoroughly in all activities aimed at achieving the set objectives and the goal in general.

 

5.         ACTIVITIES

            The activities that are been implemented to achieve the set objectives are:

-          Capacity building to leaders and the community at large on how to conserve the environment including water catchments and maintain cleanliness in their homesteads.

-          Establishment of Tree Nurseries to cover the open areas of Mt. Uluguru which is part of the Eastern Arc Mountains and other such places.

-          Creation and provision of alternative economic activities that will have dual effect of increasing living standards and thus alleviate poverty among the people as well as conserving the environmental biodiversity.

 

6.         ACCOMPLISHMENT:      

As from inception the above mentioned activities have to some extent been on the move.

 

We have received support from Care International, Foundation for Civil Society and of recent we managed to get some funds from UNDP (GEF).

 

The activities, for which these funds were used, were in line with the set objectives and goal of the organization.

 

Workshops and training aimed at building capacities of people were conducted in Morogoro Municipality, Mvomero and Morogoro Rural districts in view of:-

 

• Ø  Empowering through participation the inhabitants of Mvomero districts particularly Mlali division so that they can understand the importance of covering the bare slopes of Mt. Uluguru and conserve the up streams for the survival of inhabitants of Morogoro and the neighboring regions.
• Ø  Above all, cleanliness of homesteads and surrounding areas to harness proper sanitation was given emphasis in order to get rid of communicable diseases particularly malaria and diarrhea.

CMMUT has through years concentrated on building capacities of people on selected slopes of Mt. Uluguru so that they could use their surroundings/environment particularly the natural resources in fighting poverty looming among households.

 

To understand the benefit of conserving biodiversity, we link it with some income generating activities (IGA). Enabling them acquire skills of using modern beekeeping has both conserved the environment in the sense that no more half hazard bush fires and that households economic status have been improve.

 

In reality; people do change. It is so interesting that after some training and facilitating them; people in villages have opted to form groups and start tree nurseries that would be used to cover open areas of Mt. Uluguru as well as starting their own plots where they can get building poles and firewood. This in turn will eventually minimize frequencies of people encroaching the forests in view of looking for firewood/charcoal.

 

7.         CHALLENGES

Conservation of degraded environment requires coordinated and combined efforts. Since it is not a one sector approach; the issues pertaining to environment and biodiversity conservation requires a multi - sectoral approach. This is lacking in our administrative systems. Agriculture; health and other such departments are working so independently of the other that in trying to solicit information from any of these becomes so difficult.

 

On the other hand; we face some financial constrain. Despite the fact that we would like to embark on more beneficial activities; we lack support for implementation. We are however trying to solicit for such assistance for development endeavours.

 

8.         FUTURE PLANS

As far as changes are concerned; results earmarked that emanates from environmental conservation requires time. We will for this matter continue serving the communities in view of preserving/conserving environmental biodiversity as well as improving sanitation for sustainable development.

 

• Ø  We will continue providing awareness trainings to leaders, opinion leaders and communities aimed at bringing some attitudinal changes towards environmental conservation and cleanliness.

 

• Ø  We will sensitize communities to start and establish tree and fruit nurseries for their own development and ultimately curbing of environment degradation.

 

• Ø  We will use the existing institutions in our working area to bring into people’s mind issues of conserving the environmental biodiversity in order to alleviate poverty among our societies hence “Environmental Poverty”.

 

• Ø  We will use the existing administrative system to sensitize the communities in Morogoro districts in view of eradicating malaria among communities.

 

All in all; we endeavour to sensitize communities through training to bring the environment back to its nature that will promote sustainable Development hence “Environmental Awareness and Cleanliness for Better health”.