Tetra Tech works with private sector associations, youth groups, and the government to improve access to business services and promote policies that foster a supportive enabling environment for youth-led agribusinesses.
In Tanzania, youth (15–35 years of age) and children (aged less than 15 years) account for 75 percent of the population. Youth represent 56 percent of the active labor force, and most of them are unemployed, underemployed, or working in precarious conditions. Agriculture is the main source of employment in Tanzania, accounting for two-thirds of all jobs and comprising a quarter of the country’s gross domestic product (GDP).
However, youth face many challenges entering and succeeding in the agriculture sector, including lack of access to land, lack of infrastructure, and difficulty sourcing quality inputs. Youth-led agricultural enterprises face constraints due to limited access to markets and credit, lack of experience and business skills, and an unfavorable business environment. Registration and taxation policies often hinder start-ups and fail to create a nurturing business environment needed to incubate youth-led start-ups and innovators.
To address these challenges, Tetra Tech is implementing the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID)-funded Feed the Future Tanzania Imarisha Sekta Binafsi (Private Sector Strengthening) Project—the U.S. Government’s flagship Tanzanian private sector engagement project. The project focuses on Tanzania’s Southern Agricultural Growth Corridor and Pemba and Unguja in Zanzibar, as these areas have significant agricultural potential and align with USAID’s priority zones.
Benefits
- Facilitate the engagement of 30,000 youth in cooperatives, networks, and enterprises
- Provide quality business support services to 6,000 youth-led enterprises
- Support 3,000 youth-led enterprises with access to finance
- Improve the design, implementation, and enforcement of policies that benefit youth
Tetra Tech works with and through local grantees such as private sector associations, organizations, and enterprises to facilitate the design and implementation of appropriate, locally led solutions that improve access to business services to increase economic growth. In addition, we are promoting youth-friendly, climate- and socially inclusive approaches to sustainable youth enterprise development in partnership with government agencies, including the Ministries of Agriculture, Investment and Planning, Trade and Industrial Development, and their Zanzibar counterparts.
Through Feed the Future Tanzania Imarisha Sekta Binafsi, we are applying a market systems development approach to support grantees to develop organizational capacity and identify viable market opportunities that can be linked with youth-led enterprises. The project is also improving collaboration, coordination, and communication across development partners to maximize the efficient use of development resources.
Supporting Tanzania’s Youth Agricultural Entrepreneurs with Market-Systems Development.
At a glance
Contract value
$9.6M
Client
U.S. Agency for International Development
Implementation period
2022–2026
Services
Agribusiness, youth and women’s economic empowerment, business enabling environment, private sector engagement
