Villagers thumb up REGROW project for resolving challenges

MBEYA: RESIDENTS of Uhambule and Chamoto Villages, Mbarali District in Mbeya Region have expressed their gratitude towards the government-led Resilient Natural Resource Management for Tourism and Growth (REGROW) project for addressing longstanding challenges posed by floods, particularly during the rainy season.

The perennial issue stemmed from the River Mambi deviating from its original course by pouring its water into the Great Ruaha River, wreaking havoc by inundating homes, destroying crops and disrupting daily movements, including children’s access to education.

The communities faced significant hardships due to the altered course of the river. REGROW intervened by carrying out meticulous river training works, redirecting the river back to its natural flow path through a 15-kilometre excavation effort, effectively mitigating the flood risks.

River training works connote the process of constructing different structures along a river for the purpose of guiding and confining the river flow in the river channel.

The other objectives of river training works are to aid in controlling and regulating the river beds. The Rufiji Basin Water Board (RBWB) Great Ruaha Catchment Officer, Eng Abisai Chilunda said the comprehensive operation cost approximately 200m/-.

He added that utilising REGROW-owned machineries for the river training proved to be a cost-effective measure, resulting in substantial savings of over 1.8bn/- compared to engaging a regular contractor and renting the necessary equipment.

“The REGROW project purchased essential machines, such as the bulldozer, excavator and tipper, for approximately 1.4bn/-. These machines are now utilised for river training in the district, something which has significantly reduced the cost of renting equipment,” he said.

According to him, the same machines also facilitated river training of 10 kilometres at the River Kyoga in Manienga Village within the district.

He said the utilisation of these resources has significantly reduced rental expenses and enhanced the project’s overall impact on water resource management. Local community leaders and residents attested to the transformative impact of the REGROW project, emphasising the dire circumstances alleviated by the river training initiative.

They said the restoration of natural water courses not only safeguarded lives and livelihoods but also ensured safe passage for schoolchildren and facilitated inter-village mobility.

“The worst thing is that the students studying at Uhambule Primary School were unable to go to school during rainy season because to get there they had to cross this river, which was completely impassable,” expressed the Chamoto Village Executive, Ms Sekelagha Mwakapesa.

For his part, the Uhambule Village Chairman, Robert Kinanda expressed gratitude to REGROW for their excellent work, saying that every rainy season, people would experience a tremendous deal of anxiety over their personal safety and belongings.

Also Read: Samia saddened by toddler killing, Police arrest four

Acknowledging the pivotal role of community engagement in sustaining the interventions, he further emphasised the importance of ongoing maintenance practices to prevent future flood-related crises.

Initiatives such as tree planting at water sources and educational campaigns conducted collaboratively with REGROW experts underscore the collective responsibility of preserving water resources.

“Thus, in addition to having completed the exercise of planting trees near water sources, we also carry on educating people about water conservation best practices in association with specialists from REGROW,” noted Owden Mwakyusa, Chairman of Chamoto Village.

Uhambule resident, Frank Mwakikuti highlighted the villagers’ renewed sense of ownership and participation in maintaining infrastructure improvements, recognising the long-term benefits for both individual communities and the nation as a whole.

Elaborating, he said the commitment to environmental stewardship and resource conservation reflects a shared vision for sustainable development and disaster resilience.

Furthermore, the REGROW Project’s holistic approach extends beyond river training, encompassing ecosystem restoration measures like planting 170,000 indigenous trees in water catchment areas and constructing five cattle troughs worth 570m/- in the villages of Ikanutwa, Manienga, Wimbamahango, Itamboleo and Kibadaga.

Additionally, the construction of 10 water users’ community offices worth 600m/- in multiple districts of Mufindi, Makete, Mbarali and Wanging’ombe underscores REGROW’s commitment to empowering local stakeholders and promoting inclusive water governance.

The REGROW project is being implemented through soft loan funds of 150 million US dollars from the World Bank (WB).