Abstract:
The study on contribution of valley bottom cultivation (vinyungu) to poverty alleviation in
Mtitu River Basin in Kilolo District was conducted in order to examine the role of this
type of agriculture to rural livelihood. This type of agriculture has been practiced over
many decades. In Mtitu River Basin almost all valley bottoms are used by small farmers
who practice farming in lowlands, usually called vinyungu, a type of farming practiced in
dry season. Tanzania Government has been restricting agricultural activities that are
carried along rivers, in catchments and in all valley bottoms, but still many areas of this
type are used for agricultural activities. The specific objectives of this study were: (i) To
investigate agricultural activities in Mtitu river Basin, (ii) to examine the importance of
valley bottom cultivation (vinyungu) to people’s income, (iii) to examine why people
prefer vinyungu and (iv) to assess the sustainability of valley bottom cultivation in the
context of environmental conservation. Data were collected through structured, semi-
structured questionnaires, Focused Group Discussion (FGD) and non-participatory
observation. Purposive, stratified and simple random sampling were employed to obtain
the respondents for vinyungu. These were eight villages with 15 respondents each village
comprising a total of 120 respondents. Data processing and analysis were done at SUA
using Statistical Package for Social Sciences computer software in conformity with the
objective of the study. Research findings have revealed that contribution of valley bottom
cultivation to income poverty in Mtitu River Basin in Kilolo District is beneficial to
farmers when compared to upland farming. This is so because what the individual farmer
earned per year was large as compared to cash income obtained from upland farming. In
order to make vinyungu sustainable as a form of agriculture the farmers should follow all
regulations set by the Kilolo District Council and the Rufiji Basin Water Office in Iringa.
