STORY: Tanzanian women turn plant waste into alternative charcoal
SHOOTING TIME: March 17, 2024
DATELINE: March 19, 2024
LENGTH: 00:02:00
LOCATION: DAR ES SALAAM, Tanzania
CATEGORY: ECONOMY/ENVIRONMENT

SHOTLIST:
1. various of the alternative charcoal made by the group
2. SOUNDBITE (Swahili): WARDA OMARY SERA, Head of Fahari Yetu
3. various of the women making alternative charcoal

STORYLINE:

In Tanzania's port city of Dar es Salaam, a 10-member women's group collects and processes coconut shells, dried banana peels, and dried cassava stalks, and turns them into alternative charcoal.

The group, called Fahari Yetu, which means "Our Pride" in Kiswahili, was established in 2019.

SOUNDBITE (Swahili): WARDA OMARY SERA, Head of Fahari Yetu
"This alternative charcoal is very beneficial compared to those made of wood. I can say we preserve the environment because we collect garbage and process them into charcoal. Also, the carbon emission during cooking is lower and more efficient."

The 44-year-old said they can produce more than 30 kilograms of alternative charcoal per day, which they sell for 1,500 Tanzanian shillings (about 59 U.S. cents) per kilogram.

She introduced that their main customers are their neighbors and poultry keepers.

Sera said the business provided them with a handsome income, which they used to pay house rent, school fees, and buy clothes and food.

Official data showed that biomass accounts for nearly 90 percent of primary household energy consumption in Tanzania, where 63.5 percent of households use firewood as their main source of cooking energy and 26.2 percent use charcoal.

According to the Tanzania Forest Services Agency, Tanzania loses 469,420 hectares of forest annually for making charcoal and firewood.

Xinhua News Agency correspondents reporting from Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.
(XHTV)