Word: biofuel
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...Tanzania, and more generally, East Africa, is a prime target for biofuel production because many, including Tanzania’s Ministry of Energy, would argue that there is plenty of land and labor to grow this global environmental solution. In addition, much of East Africa has a suitable climate for jatropha and sugarcane, crops that produce bio-diesel and ethanol. And the good news continues for Africa, because with foreign investment comes capital and the opportunity for job creation and poverty reduction. Farmers may gain access to credit and better technology for their own production, while Tanzania gains political leverage...
...First, the idea that there is free land in East Africa is not quite accurate. From Sudan to Mozambique (countries where investors are looking to grow biofuel) land tenure and use has been shaped by a variety of factors including colonization, structural adjustment, direct foreign investment and agricultural inputs. I would hesitate to say there is free land in any one of those countries although here in Tanzania there is disagreement about what is available. A representative at the Ministry of Energy estimated for me that Tanzania is using only 10 percent of its 55 million hectares of arable land...
...Given the shifting character and unpredictability of land use and tenure it is difficult to predict how the needs of farmers will change in the future. Thus, turning over large tracts of “free” land to biofuel production is risky for local populations who may otherwise have used it for their own subsistence...
...Third, we have poverty reduction and development. Development is a goal that people like to tack onto other projects. Conservation and development is a prominent example in East Africa. Now there is alternative energy and development. Unfortunately, combining goals can occur at the expense of both endeavors. For example, biofuel production will supposedly create jobs for Tanzanians, but when I spoke with SEKAB, a Swedish biofuel company, they told me production would be mechanized, requiring fewer workers. If they truly want to meet “development” goals, biofuel companies would have to make choices that...
...with this reality, I’ve tried to look for a solution, but I’ve only come away with a lesson: It is complicated using someone else’s turf to do your own good. I’m not saying that Americans should focus biofuel efforts domestically, because corn is not a productive biofuel crop, and using it for ethanol inflates food prices and takes a toll on people who rely on food aid. Rather, I’m implying that there are two sides to almost every action—and sometimes when trying...