Agricultural Non-State Actors Forum (ANSAF)

Agricultural Non-State Actors Forum (ANSAF) is a member-led forum including farmers’ umbrella organizations, private sector, and non-governmental organizations (national and international) operating in Tanzania. Started as a loose entity with eight members in 2006, ANSAF was formally registered in 2009 as a non-governmental organization that works in all regions of mainland Tanzania and Zanzibar. ANSAF envisions a Tanzanian society free of poverty where sound agricultural policies and best practices contribute to the transformation of the country’s economy. It seeks to work with members and nonmembers to orchestrate collaborative efforts to influence policy and practice change on crucial issues affecting marginalized smallholder producers (including women and youths) and other stakeholders through learning, communicating and advocacy. ANSAF advocates for equitable resources and power allocation, pro-smallholder producer policies and practices, and strengthened engagement platforms to ensure the voices of poor men and women are heard. The Forum, therefore, provides a platform for agricultural sector players (local and central government, members of parliament, development partners, producers, the private sector, and other service providers) to discuss what is working and what is not working in agricultural policy implementation. This is done to influence and facilitate the transformed lives of smallholder producers (SHPs) through effective strategic investments with the view of changing the behavior of actors as well as agricultural policy and practices. To promote changes, citizen engagement and accountability, several approaches are used, including research, roundtables and dialogues, media engagement and capacity development for the members.