MV Ilemela Ferry was a dream for BEZI Island community before TAHEA Mwanza set out to mobilize the community members in 2012 for them to invest part of their money they got from fishing to support young children care and development in Bezi island.
Before then, this is how we reached Bezi Island to mobilize the community in the last 10+ years, we used the available fishing boats privately owned.
BEZI ISLAND: OUR PRIDE AND CHANGEMAKING STORY
Bezi is a small Island in Lake Victoria, Mwanza Region, in Ilemela district
Introduction and Background
Bezi Island is found 37km2 from Mwanza city centre in southern part of Ilemela district in Mwanza region. It is one of small islands in the Lake Victoria which is located 18km2 away from Kayenze shore. The ethnic groups who are natives of the Island are Sukuma tribe who lived there before colonial time using chieftainship system of leadership under Chief Nugwa Madegereko who was later succeeded by chief Luhende. After the Independence, the Kerewe tribe (another ethnic group in Mwanza region) came to live in the island mainly for fishing activities and finally settled and intermarried with the Sukuma families. The two tribes were said to be the natives of the Island and they were the majority in Bezi Island though other people from different parts of the country were migrating there specifically for fishing and other petty businesses.
Bezi Island in 2012 had a population of about 3,873 people (2011 Bezi census, when we assessed the population of Bezi island one problem presented itself to be the challenge especially when data was being collected, that’s frequent immigration and emigration of people which depended on the rise and fall in fish catch, so there were times when the island had more people due to the high season for fish catch.
Fishing activities in the island were previously done for subsistent needs even before the colonial period, from early 1990’s fishing was seriously commercialized in the island. The area became well known outside the Island and outside Mwanza region. This was due to the high production of fish; that people from different parts of Tanzania migrated into the area mainly for fishing activities and established temporary settlements because by then the area had very poor social services. Many wooden houses roofed with iron sheets were common site in the island, majority of people rented the wooden structures for their stay in the island while they engaged themselves in either fishing, buying, selling fish products or other petty businesses. In early 20’s the housing status started to improve as some people from outside the island invested in better housing structures which were mainly for business i.e. guest houses, social halls, worship structures were as well among the improved housing structures.
Bezi Island under chieftainship system of leadership, maintained their cultural beliefs, traditions and taboos to guide its people, these taboos were respected and every member of Bezi Island had to obey and follow them, each taboo has its consequences once it was broken. Some of the taboos included killing a snake or beating it could lead to low fish catch, women were not allowed to pass in some areas of the island and going against it would lead to pregnant women giving a non-human child, and other women who were not pregnant would have a continued menstruation. Certain trees were not allowed to be cut otherwise the island would be stormed with mosquitoes that the islanders would not be able to sleep or work, in addition, no fire was to be lit on the island for almost a week until elders provide some kind of sacrifice, and this period people would not go fishing.
All Bezi members were responsible for keeping, preserving and informing all guests about the rules and taboos. Elders who were descendants of the Chief Clan were responsible for providing offerings and sacrifice where it was needed.
The following challenges were identified by the survey team in 2012:
75% of residents in Bezi Island depended only on fishing activities for sustaining their livelihoods, the remaining 25% of residents depended on small businesses-related to fishing and non-fishing activities.
There were inadequate health services
Lack of a school for children. – The Island did not have a school to cater for young children. There was neither a day care center nor primary school for children, except a room of approximately 2m by 2½m where 30 children aged 3 to 6 years attended every day specifically for reading, writing and counting skills offered by one person at a cost of 7,000/= Tsh per month per child. Children who were 7 years of age and above were sent outside of the island to stay with other relatives where they accessed primary education; in spite of such arrangements the survey team met children of school age who were at home (a total of about 55 children) from the 50 H/H surveyed.
Prevalence of Water Borne Diseases –The reason behind the waterborne diseases was due to the use of lake water (100%) which was the only source for Bezi Island and this water was not safe for drinking.
Lack/Inadequate number of toilets is the island, The survey team also discovered that the area has inadequate number of toilets in which 74 % of the surveyed H/H did not have toilets, only 1.2% had permanent toilets.
Inadequate literacy among the fishing community members, most of the fishing community residents were illiterate except for a few immigrants who had come for businesses had basic education.
Children exposure to undesirable adult habits. The survey participants observed that majority of children mostly below 6 years roam about along the lake shore taking care of themselves during the day while their parents were busy with fishing and selling fish products. There were 3 social halls where children accessed uncensored video shows as all children were allowed free entrance.
Poor and unsafe means of transport to and from the island. The major means of transport to Bezi Island were engine boats and canoes owned by business men, these boats and canoes were traditionally made to transport commodities from one place to another and at that time they were used to transport human beings whose safety was not well established. There were reported incidents reported on the loss of people from boats and some rescued due to accidents caused by overcrowded vessels.
Poor housing – the survey team noted that housing was a problem for most of the island residents, apart from them having stayed in the place for a number of years, they lived in temporary houses which did not provide adequate shelter for families.
Commercial sex (Prostitution). It was discovered from the respondents that commercial sex was on the increase on the island where young girls and married women engaged in the activity by charging men some money for the services, the costs were higher for a new girl in the Island and it goes down as she stays longer on the site. The survey team managed to observe a number of young girls (approximately 20) who were reported to be involved in commercial sex. They were seen working as attendants in restaurants, bars and guest houses during the day but during the night time, they had their respective venues for commercial sex. It was noted that at the beginning when a woman enters the island, she would be charging 50,000/= per one contact with a man, but as time went, the cost will be depreciating as she becomes familiar to men so the fee goes down to 20,000/=, 10,000/= and 5000/= was the lowest. However, respondents were unable to tell exactly the reason behind such decrease in the fees as the women stayed longer.
Livelihood of Bezi Island people
The survey discovered that there were three types of fishing activities at Bezi Island which were fishing of Nile Perch, fishing of Tilapia and fishing of Sardines. The seasonal calendar of fishing activities depended much on the type of fishing, for example it was noted that fishing of Tilapia and Nile Perch takes place throughout the year. The fishing of Sardines was done when the moon was not full; fishing always depended on moon sequences and fishing activities which usually lasted for three (3) weeks before the moon lit. Fishing of Sardines needed darkness as fishermen use pressure lamps in trapping them.
In the period when fish production was low, the livelihood of people in Bezi Island was affected too since the main livelihood asset was fishing, and as noted before the victims for this situation were women and children. It was reported that men move out of the island to search for other activities to sustain a living and came back when the fishing season improved.
Source: Bezi Island local government Office, 2012.
This type of housing was a common site on the Island at the time of the survey in 2012.
Land Ownership
Land Ownership at Bezi Island did not give chances for one to poses a large piece of land; people just owned a small piece of land which allowed them to build a simple house for shelter and at the same time used it as a place for business. The area close to the lake (the beach) was left free for fish businesses and for maintenance of fishing vessels and nets.
NB:Other people who did not possess land were just tenants for the one who came earlier and occupied pieces of land. Most of the land was owned by natives of the island who belonged to the Chief Clan and were the ones who sold some pieces of land for money.
The Survey teams also discovered that majority of fishermen who were engaged in fishing activities did not own fishing vessels like fishing boats and nets, they worked for rich people who had invested in such activities and they had to report regularly to their bosses who lived in Mwanza town.
The kind of payment for fishermen was known as 7/30 (seven per thirty) in which fishermen work for 30 days consecutively and then they get 7 days for themselves to share the amount they got from fishing, when catches are low, they had to wait for another round of 7/30, however they were given an allowance of 7,000/= per day during fishing activities for them to sustain their lives off-shore.
Income expenditure priorities in fishing communities were most of the time unplanned; most of fishermen got money on daily basis from their fishing activities but still the saving was a new vocabulary to them, “we always go fishing in the lake but once we reach the main land we are also fished out by women and entertainment” one of the fishermen said to the team.
Institutional linkage at Bezi island Fishing Community
Bezi had some established institutions which included the Local Government, Beach Management Unit, Political Parties, Religious Institutions and Bezi Security Guards, these institutions helped the Bezi people in their day today lives including their faith and political involvement.
Environmental Protection
The findings from the Baseline showed that there were no activities in place which were geared towards environmental protection. The observation of the team was that in Bezi island there were a minimal countable number of trees around the island, and those trees were indigenous, the most trees available were among those culturally tied to beliefs of the Island.
The Island had humid high temperatures, partly because of the overcrowded area but also there was high moisture evaporation. The only environmental practice which was taken care of was the cleaning of the beach where most fishing vessels landed, the cleanliness was supervised by the Beach Management Unit (BMU), facilitated by Lake Victoria Environmental Management Program (LVEMP).
Main Observations:
Bezi Island we saw at that time was a result of the growth of the Fishing Sub sector more than any other factor, so the Socio-Economic issues we were looking for were deeply anchored in the sub sector.
Bezi Island Socio Economic status mirrored the Livelihood asset of the people of the area which was strongly linked to Fishing Sub sector, without fish and fishing activities, the lives of the Island residents were at stake.
Bezi Island residents depended on Fishing as their livelihood asset but with the current Value Chain challenges there was no way that could have enabled them to improve their life standards as what they earned was mainly hand to mouth income apart from their major contribution to the fishing sub sector.
In the view of the baseline survey findings, it was true that there was a need of good planning to make sure that the interventions in Bezi Island address the multi-faceted nature of the Island situation. The planned intervention was built on the existing socio-economic scenario and community practices.
The changing community livelihoods, income status and environments, required drastic measures to re-invent the wheel to be able to sustain lives of the people especially those of young children who were brought up in a challenging situation where quality care and development was questionable.
The Survey Team suggested the following:
The Island needs to have integrated project/projects to be able to address the existing challenges in Bezi; however, the activities towards solving them needed high level of participation of the Bezi Community itself, the Local Government and the political will, before other people came in.
Education intervention was to be one of the priority areas where the community needed support, and the project had to have a Micro Finance program as a synergy to encourage and stimulate saving habit of what fishermen got, and invest in their own development at the same time supporting their young children in school.
Health was another area where the Bezi Community should prioritize as fishing activities needed healthy people, in addition to the needed health facility, Bezi people needed health education, especially on reproductive health.
Water and Sanitation were basic to community health, on that regard; it was another area of intervention.
The remaining challenges i.e., reliable transport to and from the lake, should be an area where the Local Government should consider as one of their priorities as they started to allocate staff to the area.
Since one Organization, TAHEA cannot address all the issues which faced Bezi island people, we recommended that NGOs, CBOs, Development Partners, Donors and the Local Government should forge partnerships in helping Bezi Community to address the problems they were facing in response to the community participation in solving their own problems.
Planning for an intervention
We set out to plan for an intervention in Bezi Island and the safety of the team was a priority, so we hired an engine boat for the team to avoid the overcrowded vessels.
1) TAHEA and the community collaborated in establishing a childcare center and WASH facilities.
The first group of young children who got enrolled at the childcare center.
Outdoor games were also elected to facilitate large motor skills
We added 2 classrooms for children transition in primary classes after we agreed with the local government.
The Primary school classrooms enabled the local government to allocate teachers to Bezi Island.
4 Classes were added by the government and 2 batches of children have completed class seven.
Childcare facility established through TAHEA/Community partnership resulted into:
HAPPY CHILDREN DUE TO THE ACCESS OF PRIMARY SCHOOL EDUCATION AND THE TREES WE PLANTED LOOKS FANTASTIC FOR THE SCHOOL ENVIRONMENT AND NEW ONES ARE BEING PUT IN PLACE.
What has happened to the community?
OLD BEZI ISLAND
2012
NEW BEZI ISLAND – 2025
Big changes, better and accessible transport, better housing structures
This is the office we reported to and the office bearers enabled us to reach the community- It is an important community structure/ system that facilitated our successful intervention.
“Our 12-year journey shows the power of strategic investment; childcare services led to school, health care, reliable ferry and permanent settlements. To protect those gains and ensure the health of students and families, a reliable water supply is non-negotiable. We call upon Donors, Funders, Government and any Volunteer to recognize this critical need and commit the necessary resources to fund the installation of clean water infrastructure project for the island.”
Community Based Interventions Attract Government Investment
MV Ilemela Ferry was a dream for BEZI Island community before TAHEA Mwanza set out to mobilize the community members in 2012 for them to invest part of their money they got from fishing to support young children care and development in Bezi island.
Before then, this is how we reached Bezi Island to mobilize the community in the last 10+ years, we used the available fishing boats privately owned.
BEZI ISLAND: OUR PRIDE AND CHANGEMAKING STORY
Bezi is a small Island in Lake Victoria, Mwanza Region, in Ilemela district
Introduction and Background
Bezi Island is found 37km2 from Mwanza city centre in southern part of Ilemela district in Mwanza region. It is one of small islands in the Lake Victoria which is located 18km2 away from Kayenze shore. The ethnic groups who are natives of the Island are Sukuma tribe who lived there before colonial time using chieftainship system of leadership under Chief Nugwa Madegereko who was later succeeded by chief Luhende. After the Independence, the Kerewe tribe (another ethnic group in Mwanza region) came to live in the island mainly for fishing activities and finally settled and intermarried with the Sukuma families. The two tribes were said to be the natives of the Island and they were the majority in Bezi Island though other people from different parts of the country were migrating there specifically for fishing and other petty businesses.
Bezi Island in 2012 had a population of about 3,873 people (2011 Bezi census, when we assessed the population of Bezi island one problem presented itself to be the challenge especially when data was being collected, that’s frequent immigration and emigration of people which depended on the rise and fall in fish catch, so there were times when the island had more people due to the high season for fish catch.
Fishing activities in the island were previously done for subsistent needs even before the colonial period, from early 1990’s fishing was seriously commercialized in the island. The area became well known outside the Island and outside Mwanza region. This was due to the high production of fish; that people from different parts of Tanzania migrated into the area mainly for fishing activities and established temporary settlements because by then the area had very poor social services. Many wooden houses roofed with iron sheets were common site in the island, majority of people rented the wooden structures for their stay in the island while they engaged themselves in either fishing, buying, selling fish products or other petty businesses. In early 20’s the housing status started to improve as some people from outside the island invested in better housing structures which were mainly for business i.e. guest houses, social halls, worship structures were as well among the improved housing structures.
Bezi Island under chieftainship system of leadership, maintained their cultural beliefs, traditions and taboos to guide its people, these taboos were respected and every member of Bezi Island had to obey and follow them, each taboo has its consequences once it was broken. Some of the taboos included killing a snake or beating it could lead to low fish catch, women were not allowed to pass in some areas of the island and going against it would lead to pregnant women giving a non-human child, and other women who were not pregnant would have a continued menstruation. Certain trees were not allowed to be cut otherwise the island would be stormed with mosquitoes that the islanders would not be able to sleep or work, in addition, no fire was to be lit on the island for almost a week until elders provide some kind of sacrifice, and this period people would not go fishing.
All Bezi members were responsible for keeping, preserving and informing all guests about the rules and taboos. Elders who were descendants of the Chief Clan were responsible for providing offerings and sacrifice where it was needed.
The following challenges were identified by the survey team in 2012:
Livelihood of Bezi Island people
The survey discovered that there were three types of fishing activities at Bezi Island which were fishing of Nile Perch, fishing of Tilapia and fishing of Sardines. The seasonal calendar of fishing activities depended much on the type of fishing, for example it was noted that fishing of Tilapia and Nile Perch takes place throughout the year. The fishing of Sardines was done when the moon was not full; fishing always depended on moon sequences and fishing activities which usually lasted for three (3) weeks before the moon lit. Fishing of Sardines needed darkness as fishermen use pressure lamps in trapping them.
In the period when fish production was low, the livelihood of people in Bezi Island was affected too since the main livelihood asset was fishing, and as noted before the victims for this situation were women and children. It was reported that men move out of the island to search for other activities to sustain a living and came back when the fishing season improved.
Source: Bezi Island local government Office, 2012.
This type of housing was a common site on the Island at the time of the survey in 2012.
Land Ownership
Land Ownership at Bezi Island did not give chances for one to poses a large piece of land; people just owned a small piece of land which allowed them to build a simple house for shelter and at the same time used it as a place for business. The area close to the lake (the beach) was left free for fish businesses and for maintenance of fishing vessels and nets.
NB: Other people who did not possess land were just tenants for the one who came earlier and occupied pieces of land. Most of the land was owned by natives of the island who belonged to the Chief Clan and were the ones who sold some pieces of land for money.
The Survey teams also discovered that majority of fishermen who were engaged in fishing activities did not own fishing vessels like fishing boats and nets, they worked for rich people who had invested in such activities and they had to report regularly to their bosses who lived in Mwanza town.
The kind of payment for fishermen was known as 7/30 (seven per thirty) in which fishermen work for 30 days consecutively and then they get 7 days for themselves to share the amount they got from fishing, when catches are low, they had to wait for another round of 7/30, however they were given an allowance of 7,000/= per day during fishing activities for them to sustain their lives off-shore.
Income expenditure priorities in fishing communities were most of the time unplanned; most of fishermen got money on daily basis from their fishing activities but still the saving was a new vocabulary to them, “we always go fishing in the lake but once we reach the main land we are also fished out by women and entertainment” one of the fishermen said to the team.
Institutional linkage at Bezi island Fishing Community
Bezi had some established institutions which included the Local Government, Beach Management Unit, Political Parties, Religious Institutions and Bezi Security Guards, these institutions helped the Bezi people in their day today lives including their faith and political involvement.
Environmental Protection
The findings from the Baseline showed that there were no activities in place which were geared towards environmental protection. The observation of the team was that in Bezi island there were a minimal countable number of trees around the island, and those trees were indigenous, the most trees available were among those culturally tied to beliefs of the Island.
The Island had humid high temperatures, partly because of the overcrowded area but also there was high moisture evaporation. The only environmental practice which was taken care of was the cleaning of the beach where most fishing vessels landed, the cleanliness was supervised by the Beach Management Unit (BMU), facilitated by Lake Victoria Environmental Management Program (LVEMP).
Main Observations:
In the view of the baseline survey findings, it was true that there was a need of good planning to make sure that the interventions in Bezi Island address the multi-faceted nature of the Island situation. The planned intervention was built on the existing socio-economic scenario and community practices.
The changing community livelihoods, income status and environments, required drastic measures to re-invent the wheel to be able to sustain lives of the people especially those of young children who were brought up in a challenging situation where quality care and development was questionable.
The Survey Team suggested the following:
Since one Organization, TAHEA cannot address all the issues which faced Bezi island people, we recommended that NGOs, CBOs, Development Partners, Donors and the Local Government should forge partnerships in helping Bezi Community to address the problems they were facing in response to the community participation in solving their own problems.
Planning for an intervention
We set out to plan for an intervention in Bezi Island and the safety of the team was a priority, so we hired an engine boat for the team to avoid the overcrowded vessels.
1) TAHEA and the community collaborated in establishing a childcare center and WASH facilities.
The first group of young children who got enrolled at the childcare center.
Outdoor games were also elected to facilitate large motor skills
We added 2 classrooms for children transition in primary classes after we agreed with the local government.
The Primary school classrooms enabled the local government to allocate teachers to Bezi Island.
4 Classes were added by the government and 2 batches of children have completed class seven.
Childcare facility established through TAHEA/Community partnership resulted into:
HAPPY CHILDREN DUE TO THE ACCESS OF PRIMARY SCHOOL EDUCATION AND THE TREES WE PLANTED LOOKS FANTASTIC FOR THE SCHOOL ENVIRONMENT AND NEW ONES ARE BEING PUT IN PLACE.
What has happened to the community?
OLD BEZI ISLAND
2012
NEW BEZI ISLAND – 2025
Big changes, better and accessible transport, better housing structures
Please, follow the link https://youtu.be/jTORFHPoGDM?si=ibWA0GozrEBEiuu8 to learn more about the old Bezi Island.
ISSUES TO ACT UPON FROM NOW (CLIMATE CHANGE)
WHAT WE ARE HAPPY TO SEE NOW IS – CHANGING LIVES
This is the office we reported to and the office bearers enabled us to reach the community- It is an important community structure/ system that facilitated our successful intervention.
Please follow the link to learn more about the new Bezi Island https://youtu.be/eD0nGWwt28E?si=tgOWwNchjn0b9B4G
Call to Action
“Our 12-year journey shows the power of strategic investment; childcare services led to school, health care, reliable ferry and permanent settlements. To protect those gains and ensure the health of students and families, a reliable water supply is non-negotiable. We call upon Donors, Funders, Government and any Volunteer to recognize this critical need and commit the necessary resources to fund the installation of clean water infrastructure project for the island.”
Post Code
TAHEA Mwanza