Mt Kilimanjaro, TZ – Livestock & agriculture supply store improves efficiency for local farmers – 16 Mar 2016

On February 29 Lishe Bora officially opened its new agriculture and livestock supply store in Mkyashi. The store opened just in time for the rainy season when farmers plant acres of corn, beans, cassava, and other staples.

A livestock and agriculture supply store was a sorely missing service in Mkyashi and the surrounding area. Many farmers had to travel long distances and incur significant costs to buy seeds, fertilizers, livestock feeds, and equipment.

“We are very happy to have this store now,” explained one local farmer, “because now we can get our seeds and feed without having to go all the way to town. Also, we know the quality of the seeds will be good because [Lishe Bora] is buying seeds today and selling them tomorrow. Some stores will sell you seeds that have been sitting there for years and all your efforts will go to waste. You won’t harvest.”

In addition to providing a valuable local service the store is also part of Lishe Bora’s efforts to become financially self-reliant. Eventually they hope to cover the salary of a full-time employee with income from the store. Business has been brisk for the first two weeks of business. The store has generated over 1,300,000 TZS (US $619) in revenue. Most of this revenue is from people buying seeds and fertilizers to start planting their farms. In the next couple of weeks Lishe Bora plans to begin transitioning their inventory to stock boosters for farms and more livestock feeds.

The store was largely made possible because of donations from a Parmiters School group in summer 2015. The group spent a week volunteering with Lishe Bora and at the end of their trip all of the students contributed their remaining spending money to help open the store. The Lishe Bora team also contributed money from their performance bonuses to open the store.