cited labor shortage as a critical limitation on terrace
construction.(^18) I have withheld the names of the participating villages
and divisions in order to protect my informants from
political repercussions.
(^19) TFAP, 2003.
(^20) Engleberg and Mwanvi, 1997. In theory, the village
LUPCs discussed environmental issues amongst them-
selves and used a three-dimensional model of their vil-
lage to plan what they should do and where. Despite
TFAP’s rhetorical allegiance to participatory and “bottom-
up” planning, however, in practice the committees
worked to fulfill goals predetermined by TFAP, while the
village models were used only when senior TFAP staff
visited.
(^21) For example, meeting participants switched from the
local language to Kiswahili during meetings because the
latter is the “language of the government.” When a vil-
lage chairman was present, village LUPC chairs deferred
to their higher authority and language use became more
structured with honorifics and formal turn-taking.
(^22) One man capped a long discussion about his commit-
tee’s failure to inspire other villagers to set up private
tree nurseries (for which there was no market because
TFAP gave seedlings away for free), “I see that what
we’re really doing is finding something to write in the
blank on the project form, so why does it matter why
there aren’t any more nurseries?”
(^23) After a TFAP facilitator had explained the new approach
for encouraging more localised planning during one
meeting that I attended, the village chairman immedi-
ately thanked the facilitator and explained that he would
develop plans and distribute them to the hamlets.
(^24) If a village LUPC wanted to keep villagers from cultivat-
ing in water sources and on riverbanks, TFAP told them
to report the offenders to the local court. The lawbreak-
ers paid the ridiculously low fine of Tsh 500 (which was
a significant sum in 1984, when the conservation by-
laws were enacted, but has not kept pace with the
devaluation of the Tanzanian shilling), and then file
countersuits on the grounds that only administrative offi-
cers can file charges in court and that the village LUPC is
not a government institution. The usual result was that
the village LUPC dropped the suits or compensated the
offenders for their time in court.
(^25) See, for example, Keesing, 1994 and Brumann, 1999.
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