Country: Tanzania
Member/Partner: Tearfund Canada / Diocese of Central Tanganyika (DCT)
“My faith is grounded on this: We are stewards of God’s creation; we will have to give an account of what we have done. We are the branches and God is the main stem, and we have to bear fruits, go to the world and spread [the] gospel and good news to all people.”
This is what sustains Diocese of Central Tanganyika (DCT) director of development services coordination Lister Nyang’anyi, as he faces the daily challenges of working in a place where hunger is widespread.
In Dodoma region, Tanzania, DCT is implementing a three-year agriculture and livelihoods project serving 400 farming families (2,000 individuals). Activities include mechanization of conservation agriculture, promotion of drought-tolerant crops, beekeeping, and more – all supported through village savings and loans associations (VSLA), and building on the successes of the previous project.
One of these key successes, says Lister, has been the growing number of women stepping into leadership roles – women like Veronica.
After her husband passed away in 2021, Veronica struggled to cover rent, food, and school fees for her three children. “I was highly dependent on my husband during his life, that’s why soon after his death I was not able to meet some basic needs.”
Months later, Veronica joined a VSLA and was able to start rebuilding her livelihood – harvesting salt for extra income, saving money, and taking out loans to cover school needs and diversify her livestock.
Veronica’s life changed significantly as she was able to purchase and raise pigs, pay for a new family home with an electric power connection, and purchase land for farming, which she used to plant drought-resistant grapes. Over time, Veronica’s hard work and support of group members led to her election as a VSLA facilitator.
“With that, she is more confident, respected, loved, and happy than before,” says Lister, whose own dedication to work is inspired by this progress, as he and the DCT team continue investing in brighter futures for families living with hunger.
This story was originally published in the 2026 spring edition of Breaking Bread.
