Emily Benken from USA volunteer from Omprakash Foundation received gift from local women group during her visit to Same District in Kilimanjaro.They decide to give and to ware her as a Tanzania woman.We invite more volunteers from Omprakash and else where to work with us

Rev Makenya a Director of the Mohispac Foundation poses with volunteer Emily Benken from USA.

SHENGENA FOREST WALK REPORT 2013

The campaign was launched during shengena forest walks held  on 15th July 2013, where by Mohispac Foundation and  ICRAF team comprising of staff from Nairobi, Kisumu,Tanzania, and local environmental groups  around the forest.The event  took part in the Shengena walk that happened in Mamba Miamba, Northern Tanzania.The campaign aimed to planting 100000 trees through  their local environmental groups,student environmental club at their school surrounding and to the public areas and this  charity walk event was aimed at sensitizing locals against destroying the vast Shengena forest which supports the livelihoods of more than 300,000 people.
According to a report by the World Wide Fund (WWF), for the past 50 years, about half of the world’s original forest cover has been lost owing to the unsystematic exploitation of forest resources by human beings and Shengena forest is no exception.
Rev. Nziacharo Makenya, the executive director of MOHISPAC foundation and the organizer of the walk says the woodland which plays host to five major rivers, Mkomazi game reserve and several irrigation schemes risks being wiped out if stringent and swift conservation measures are not adopted.
The event provided a platform for environmental stakeholders and the local community to interact and promote awareness on the importance of protecting Shengena Forest, with a view to limit the effects of drought and securing the endangered flora and fauna species in the forest.
The woodland which boasts of being the largest forest block in the South Pare Mountains is also rich in biodiversity and a major water tower in the region. However, it faces numerous threats. These include: gold and bauxite mining activities, farmland encroachment, wild fires, illegal logging among other human activities. 
Rev. Makenya expressed optimism in the ongoing restoration activities and called on ICRAF and other relevant stakeholders to facilitate in the conservation initiatives by providing the groups with potting materials, knowledge on tree nursery establishment and forest management.We believe that together we can make the woeld a better place to live and we improve not only our lives but the lives of our next generation.We need support of 1000 $ to implement this campaign by establishing the nursery trees in this rain season of October,November and December while in  march and april 2014 will be the right season to planting trees by taking it from the nursery to the planting areas incooperation with communities.
During the walk dubbed “Save Shengena forest”, The ICRAF team had the opportunity of visiting several conservation groups before presenting a donation of T-Shirts to the Mamba Miamba community.Only your kindly support of 1000 dollar can cover the cost of seed and polythene tubes.

Thanks and be bless to be part of this campaign

Rev Makenya

Mohispac Foundation

Executive Director

 Email:mmohispacf@yahoo.com,

call +255716876742/758888193

 Further more visit us at:www.mohispacfoundationtz.or.tz

 www.envaya.org/mof,

NDUNGU WATER PROJECT

Water is one of the most powerful ways to improve  their health, hygiene, and well-being of any families need water to survive. Ndungu village is situated in the local government Ward of Ndungu Same District in Pangani Basin.The village is a part of Same District council.Its a traditional village of Pare people,although there are also other tribes like Sambaa,Maasai pastoralists and other so many tribes from within the country. Their economics activities depend on agriculture,livestock and trading but majority of them are small scale farmers and agro-pastoralists. This project of water will implemented at Ndungu village and other five villages nearby which is located eastern part of Tanzania but its bordered with Mkomazi game reserve which is about 500 kms from Dar-es-salaam the capital and trading centre city of Tanzania to improve health, sanitation,
hygiene, socio-economic and living condition among the beneficiaries local communities. .. At this moment, many communities throughout the areas are suffering needlessly because water is either scarce or polluted or may not exist at all.As a charity organization we believe that when clean, fresh water begins to flow in a community, a whole new life begins – free from the threat of food shortages and the myriad of health related problems associated with hunger.

Lack of safe water Simply put cause diseases among them like (typhoid, diarrheal diseases, amoebic dysentery, cholera, and other notoriously virulent diseases) especially during the rainfall seasons due to contaminated water. And for those who survive, without good health, there is little chance for a normal and productive life. Much of the reason is because in rural areas in Tanzania like Ndungu the only water source for people to wash with and drink from is often a badly polluted shallow rivers because both animals and humans use the same water at the river Yongoma. In those areas where there’s actually a stream or river, they’re often polluted as well, because animal and human wastes are emptied directly into it without proper treatment .Mohispac Foundation water’ projects have an immediate life-changing impact, particularly on women and children, who most often have the responsibility of collecting water for the family each day of their lives. Successfully projects utilize water and sanitation as a tool to create sustainable socioeconomic development in these poor rural communities.

Their challenges is our challenges too and we believe it is one of our responsibilities to give a voice to the rural poor of Same District and to say: “Yes, everyone deserves the right to safe water.”Every day, thousands of students head for class with no clean water. It simply can’t be found.Without access to water, education is almost impossible. Dirty water leads to a cycle of disease, missed school days, and high drop-out rates – especially for girls in the areas of the project.The project is going to benefit 30,000 extremely poverty people from six villages in Same District.The purpose of this  proposal is to help the poor families to get safe drinking water  through Construction of Water Pipe Line direct from Yongoma River which is located upward of the mountains at Ndungu village , Construction of Reservoir tank at Kampimbi areas of Ndungu and its distributions to other 5 villages. The availability of safe and clean water will controlled eruption diseases and the standard of living among them will be improved.

The project need your kindly support of $300,000 for the project of two years while people will donate their manpower to support the implementation of the project. Nothing changes a community like providing a source of clean water for use. Giving clean water to a poverty stricken community like in Ndungu is just like giving a blood transfusion to a dying man. Clean water and latrines gives people the opportunity and the dignity to lead healthy lives, pursue education, and fulfill their lives to the fullest. This leads to new potential, new hope for a better tomorrow and a new life.
We hope that by the end of the project the community around will have an access to clean and safe water to improve their health and their economic position.

Any assistance will be gratefully esteemed.

RevMakenya
MohispacFoundation
ExecutiveDirector
Email:mmohispacf@yahoo.com,
call+255716876742/758888193

NB:Contact us to view our fully proposal.


Further:more visit us at:www.mohispacfoundationtz.or.tz
www.envaya.org/mof,

Mohispac Foundation teams with the teams from World Agro Forest Centre posed together at same picture during shengena forest walks on 15th july 2013

Shengena  Forest Reserve is  the largest forest block in the South Pare mountains, it is situated between the North Pare mountains and the West Usambara mountains in north-eastern Tanzania. The southern Pare Mountains are situated in Kilimanjaro Region, about 150 kilometre south of Moshi district. The forest reserve covers an area of 14,213 hectares of various forest types and Montana grassland from an altitude of 1,250m to Shengena peak at an altitude of 2,462m.  The Shengena forest reserve, with numerous water springs, is home to animals, reptiles and bird species rare in other parts of the world and therefore its protection implied to the promotion of tourist activities in the area. Mt Shengena is covered by dense forests. They are the livelihood of the surrounding villages, home to rare animals and plant species and it surrounds Pare Mountains (Same District). Most importantly however, they provide water for the entire Same district – until now. The water is very clean and can be used for washing, cooking, drinking and many more other uses. On the ridge, the trees had to give way to bare red soil. Rivers originating from Shengena forest reserve include Yongoma, Saseni, Mhokevunta, Nakombo, Pangani and Hingilili draining water in Kalemawe Dam, and the lowland areas of Kihurio, Ndungu Irrigation schemes, Kisiwani, Gonja, Bendera  and Mkomazi for rice production as well as water supply in Same, Makanya and beyond that and more than 300000 people depend water from the forest for their lives.On top of the Shengena Mountains is the dense tropical forest with many rare trees, plants, different types of rare reptiles, birds and different kinds of wild animals. The forest offers an oasis of rest, beauty and fresh air. Visitors can easily walk a day through the forest without meeting anyone (Tourists activities). The surrounding villages are among of the most isolated places in Northern Tanzania and the local people have kept their traditional (Pare culture) throughout their history. Narrow footpaths wind through the mountains from one village to another which attract rains in the forest and the villages around. Africa's most biodiverse nation, Tanzania as well, has added a few more species to its dockets. Researchers have discovered three new amphibians in the always surprising Eastern Arc Mountains (Shengena forest), a region which has supplied a number of new species recently( Callulina laphami, Callulina shengena, and Callulina stanleyi)were discovered by an international group of scientists, including Tanzanian scientists. The remaining habitats are threatened by forest clearing due to agriculture, forest fire, gold mining activities and illegal timber/logging. Although the forest benefit people around is as follows vegetable foods (leaves, tubers, fruit);honey, termites and wild meat, wood for building, fuel and income generation through tourism, place of worship; gums, resins and fibers, herbs and medicines, grass for thatching hut, pasture for livestock, Agricultural activities, water for domestic uses and so many other uses.

Currently the forest is faced with a number of man-initiated threats.  These includes forest fires, encroachment for agriculture, tree felling for wood fuel, building materials(logs, timbers) which suffocate indigenous species caused by Gold mines activities taking place illegally within the forest. But now the forest, spring water, natural vegetation, species, wild animals are in danger to disappear due to the deforestation and Gold mines activities taking place within the forest. But all these wealth of the National are endanger to disappear due to man threats caused by forest mining activities, Forest fires, illegal trees harvesting and so many other factors which has caused miserable and disappearing of rare species in the forest as follows

Bauxite mining in Mount Shengena :The forests are disappearing under spoil heaps, this has caused humankind and nature suffers due to the greed for raw materials of others. It not only destroys this unique ecosystem, but also the source of water for the entire Same district. The villagers around the forest has already complaining of not having enough water to keep their fields fertile. Agriculture would be almost impossible and particularly the rural population will then be deprived of its basic food. Moreover, the mining also damages the ecosystem of the adjacent Shengena Forest Reserve, which was originally intended to protect the forest precisely against these influences. Communities living along the Bauxite mining  has blamed the escalating environmental degradation for that the endemic drought that is threatening food production in the area. It is just contributing to environmental degradation in the area.
Large trucks transport the red raw material (soil) for aluminum into the valley. The raw material is being brought to the neighboring Kenya and from there, is shipped to Asia.

The entire region is threatened to dry up if there is no more water flowing from the catchment areas and agriculture would then be impossible, Even now, farmers in Ndungu,Kihurio,Bendera,Mkomazi,Bwambo,Chome,Gonja,Mpinji,Mamba e.tc villages are complaining of increasingly poor harvests due to the fact that their rivers has dry up. Their livelihood is threatened by the exploitation. Some of them formed a protest group, but without any help, they are powerless against other side that pays a lot of bribe for silence to minimize their protesting.

Gold mining taking place within the forest and within the catchments areas which has result water to dry up in the main rivers.The people worry about the drought as the mining is not friendly to forests and destroys sources of water. We have started experiencing water shortage in this area compared to the past. A survey we carried out during the Shengena Forest Walks on 15^th july 2013 incooperation with World Agro Forest Centre from Nairobi,Kisumu,Dar-es-salaam and other Environmental stakeholders from Tanzania in the area recently showed that the on-going mining has negative impacts to the indigenous people in the area. The event provided a platform for environmental stakeholders and the local community to interact and promote awareness on the importance of protecting Shengena Forest, with a view to limit the effects of drought and securing the endangered flora and fauna species in the forest. During the event Rev. Makenya expressed optimism in the ongoing restoration activities and called on ICRAF and other relevant stakeholders to facilitate in the conservation initiatives by providing the groups with potting materials, knowledge on tree nursery establishment and forest management. The event took part in the Shengena walk that happened in Mamba Miamba, Northern Tanzania.The campaign aimed to plants 1 million trees in the year 2013-2014 incooperation with our local environmental groups,students environmental club at their school surrounding and to the public areas, the charity walk event was aimed at sensitizing locals against destroying the vast Shengena forest which supports the livelihoods of more than 300,000 people.
We have been experiencing water shortage in this area as the mining process disturbs water sources. Even crop production has gone down, the situation that makes us to suspect these mining activities here as the major cause of water dry up, because the rains are not enough compared to the preciously years.

The water from natural springs and rivers originating from the forest used to be sparkling clear but today it looks brownish and dirty, indicating possible case of poisoned water. Gold mining that involved up-rooting of huge trees as miners believed that gold was attached to the roots, would cause quick disappearance of the water springs and health complication due to chemicals applied. The vegetation starts to change color. Trees found along the river banks as contaminated water flows down the stream dry quickly, indicating that the chemicals found in water were harmful to living organisms. We admitted that indeed mining activities put at risk people's lives as miners targeted water sources.

"The miners have been falling trees at an alarming rate and we fear that the forest cover may soon be depleted and this will be disastrous not only to Same district, but also the entire nation because Pangani River basins which is the source of Hydro electric power at Hale Nation station also depend on water flowing from Shengena forest reserves.

 Other challenges includes Including encroachment for agricultural land, overcutting of trees for building,illegal timbers,logs ,charcoal,fencing, overgrazing, uncontrolled bush fires, lack of funds to support them seeds and polythene tubes,cutting of trees to harvest honey, overuse leading to loss of water sources in the forest.Animals around Mkomazi National Reserve are endangering due to the fact that they depends water from Shengena forest for their survival too through Kalemawe Dam which has been drying up due to forest obliteration. Mkomazi game reserve and several irrigation schemes risks being wiped out if stringent and swift conservation measures are not adopted.
According to a report by the World Wide Fund (WWF), for the past 50 years, about half of the world’s original forest cover has been lost owing to the unsystematic exploitation of forest resources by human beings and Shengena forest is no exception.We needs your kindly aids to save most adversely species which are in danger to disappear, poor farmers and pastoralist at the remoteness areas who are already grappling with water which are now dry up due to the human threats in the forest, rivers and sources of water from the peak of Shengena forest. More than 300,000 people will continue to benefit from the forest if and only if we will get your social, economical, technical, legal and moral supports. Therefore, our project intends to address man-initiated threats with the view to making a contribution in forest management, environmental education, research, advocacy, stopping mines activities, restoring natural vegetation within and  around the forest to improve their livelihood. These initiatives should be seen as experiments along the route to fully sustainable partnerships between people and their government in the joint custodianship of forests that provide benefits at local and national levels - including biodiversity conservation.Be apart of the campaign to fulfills our target to plant 1 million trees around the area in the year 2013-2014

Here is shengena forest reserve photos during the walks on 15th july 2013

Here is shengena forest reserve photos during the walks on 15th july 2013

Here is shengena forest reserve photos during the walks on 15th july 2013

Here is shengena forest reserve photos during the walks on 15th july 2013

Shengena  Forest Reserve is  the largest forest block in the South Pare mountains, it is situated between the North Pare mountains and the West Usambara mountains in north-eastern Tanzania. The southern Pare Mountains are situated in Kilimanjaro Region, about 150 kilometre south of Moshi district. The forest reserve covers an area of 14,213 hectares of various forest types and Montana grassland from an altitude of 1,250m to Shengena peak at an altitude of 2,462m.  The Shengena forest reserve, with numerous water springs, is home to animals, reptiles and bird species rare in other parts of the world and therefore its protection implied to the promotion of tourist activities in the area. Mt Shengena is covered by dense forests. They are the livelihood of the surrounding villages, home to rare animals and plant species and it surrounds Pare Mountains (Same District). Most importantly however, they provide water for the entire Same district – until now. The water is very clean and can be used for washing, cooking, drinking and many more other uses. On the ridge, the trees had to give way to bare red soil. Rivers originating from Shengena forest reserve include Yongoma, Saseni, Mhokevunta, Nakombo, Pangani and Hingilili draining water in Kalemawe Dam, and the lowland areas of Kihurio, Ndungu Irrigation schemes, Kisiwani, Gonja, Bendera  and Mkomazi for rice production as well as water supply in Same, Makanya and beyond that and more than 300000 people depend water from the forest for their lives.On top of the Shengena Mountains is the dense tropical forest with many rare trees, plants, different types of rare reptiles, birds and different kinds of wild animals. The forest offers an oasis of rest, beauty and fresh air. Visitors can easily walk a day through the forest without meeting anyone (Tourists activities). The surrounding villages are among of the most isolated places in Northern Tanzania and the local people have kept their traditional (Pare culture) throughout their history. Narrow footpaths wind through the mountains from one village to another which attract rains in the forest and the villages around. Africa's most biodiverse nation, Tanzania as well, has added a few more species to its dockets. Researchers have discovered three new amphibians in the always surprising Eastern Arc Mountains (Shengena forest), a region which has supplied a number of new species recently( Callulina laphami, Callulina shengena, and Callulina stanleyi)were discovered by an international group of scientists, including Tanzanian scientists. The remaining habitats are threatened by forest clearing due to agriculture, forest fire, gold mining activities and illegal timber/logging. Although the forest benefit people around is as follows vegetable foods (leaves, tubers, fruit);honey, termites and wild meat, wood for building, fuel and income generation through tourism, place of worship; gums, resins and fibers, herbs and medicines, grass for thatching hut, pasture for livestock, Agricultural activities, water for domestic uses and so many other uses.

Currently the forest is faced with a number of man-initiated threats.  These includes forest fires, encroachment for agriculture, tree felling for wood fuel, building materials(logs, timbers) which suffocate indigenous species caused by Gold mines activities taking place illegally within the forest. But now the forest, spring water, natural vegetation, species, wild animals are in danger to disappear due to the deforestation and Gold mines activities taking place within the forest. But all these wealth of the National are endanger to disappear due to man threats caused by forest mining activities, Forest fires, illegal trees harvesting and so many other factors which has caused miserable and disappearing of rare species in the forest as follows

Bauxite mining in Mount Shengena :The forests are disappearing under spoil heaps, this has caused humankind and nature suffers due to the greed for raw materials of others. It not only destroys this unique ecosystem, but also the source of water for the entire Same district. The villagers around the forest has already complaining of not having enough water to keep their fields fertile. Agriculture would be almost impossible and particularly the rural population will then be deprived of its basic food. Moreover, the mining also damages the ecosystem of the adjacent Shengena Forest Reserve, which was originally intended to protect the forest precisely against these influences. Communities living along the Bauxite mining  has blamed the escalating environmental degradation for that the endemic drought that is threatening food production in the area. It is just contributing to environmental degradation in the area.
Large trucks transport the red raw material (soil) for aluminum into the valley. The raw material is being brought to the neighboring Kenya and from there, is shipped to Asia.

The entire region is threatened to dry up if there is no more water flowing from the catchment areas and agriculture would then be impossible, Even now, farmers in Ndungu,Kihurio,Bendera,Mkomazi,Bwambo,Chome,Gonja,Mpinji,Mamba e.tc villages are complaining of increasingly poor harvests due to the fact that their rivers has dry up. Their livelihood is threatened by the exploitation. Some of them formed a protest group, but without any help, they are powerless against other side that pays a lot of bribe for silence to minimize their protesting.

Gold mining taking place within the forest and within the catchments areas which has result water to dry up in the main rivers.The people worry about the drought as the mining is not friendly to forests and destroys sources of water. We have started experiencing water shortage in this area compared to the past. A survey we carried out during the Shengena Forest Walks on 15^th july 2013 incooperation with World Agro Forest Centre from Nairobi,Kisumu,Dar-es-salaam and other Environmental stakeholders from Tanzania in the area recently showed that the on-going mining has negative impacts to the indigenous people in the area. The event provided a platform for environmental stakeholders and the local community to interact and promote awareness on the importance of protecting Shengena Forest, with a view to limit the effects of drought and securing the endangered flora and fauna species in the forest. During the event Rev. Makenya expressed optimism in the ongoing restoration activities and called on ICRAF and other relevant stakeholders to facilitate in the conservation initiatives by providing the groups with potting materials, knowledge on tree nursery establishment and forest management. The event took part in the Shengena walk that happened in Mamba Miamba, Northern Tanzania.The campaign aimed to plants 1 million trees in the year 2013-2014 incooperation with our local environmental groups,students environmental club at their school surrounding and to the public areas, the charity walk event was aimed at sensitizing locals against destroying the vast Shengena forest which supports the livelihoods of more than 300,000 people.
We have been experiencing water shortage in this area as the mining process disturbs water sources. Even crop production has gone down, the situation that makes us to suspect these mining activities here as the major cause of water dry up, because the rains are not enough compared to the preciously years.

The water from natural springs and rivers originating from the forest used to be sparkling clear but today it looks brownish and dirty, indicating possible case of poisoned water. Gold mining that involved up-rooting of huge trees as miners believed that gold was attached to the roots, would cause quick disappearance of the water springs and health complication due to chemicals applied. The vegetation starts to change color. Trees found along the river banks as contaminated water flows down the stream dry quickly, indicating that the chemicals found in water were harmful to living organisms. We admitted that indeed mining activities put at risk people's lives as miners targeted water sources.

"The miners have been falling trees at an alarming rate and we fear that the forest cover may soon be depleted and this will be disastrous not only to Same district, but also the entire nation because Pangani River basins which is the source of Hydro electric power at Hale Nation station also depend on water flowing from Shengena forest reserves.

 Other challenges includes Including encroachment for agricultural land, overcutting of trees for building,illegal timbers,logs ,charcoal,fencing, overgrazing, uncontrolled bush fires, lack of funds to support them seeds and polythene tubes,cutting of trees to harvest honey, overuse leading to loss of water sources in the forest.Animals around Mkomazi National Reserve are endangering due to the fact that they depends water from Shengena forest for their survival too through Kalemawe Dam which has been drying up due to forest obliteration. Mkomazi game reserve and several irrigation schemes risks being wiped out if stringent and swift conservation measures are not adopted.
According to a report by the World Wide Fund (WWF), for the past 50 years, about half of the world’s original forest cover has been lost owing to the unsystematic exploitation of forest resources by human beings and Shengena forest is no exception.We needs your kindly aids to save most adversely species which are in danger to disappear, poor farmers and pastoralist at the remoteness areas who are already grappling with water which are now dry up due to the human threats in the forest, rivers and sources of water from the peak of Shengena forest. More than 300,000 people will continue to benefit from the forest if and only if we will get your social, economical, technical, legal and moral supports. Therefore, our project intends to address man-initiated threats with the view to making a contribution in forest management, environmental education, research, advocacy, stopping mines activities, restoring natural vegetation within and  around the forest to improve their livelihood. These initiatives should be seen as experiments along the route to fully sustainable partnerships between people and their government in the joint custodianship of forests that provide benefits at local and national levels - including biodiversity conservation.Be apart of the campaign to fulfills our target to plant 1 million trees around the area in the year 2013-2014