Empowering Katavi communities through Community Conservation Banking (COCOBA)

From June 2nd to 7th, 2025, the Sustain Eco project—funded by the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (SIDA)—successfully conducted a training session for two Community Conservation Banking (COCOBA) groups in Tanganyika District, Katavi. This vital training involved 60 participants, including 33 women. COCOBA is a microfinance initiative designed to help community groups run small, environmentally friendly businesses, such as beekeeping. This training is a significant step in empowering local communities, as the SUSTAIN Eco project will provide a $5,000 grant to each trained group to help launch their business ideas.

SUSTAIN Eco Project

The training focused on strengthening group governance, financial literacy, and proper record-keeping, all essential for the sustainability and impact of these community savings initiatives. Participants also learned to develop comprehensive beekeeping business plans, including three-year financial income projections after receiving the grant.

Conservation education was a key component, with a strong emphasis on forest and carbon projects. The training highlighted the necessary procedures for engaging in carbon projects, especially given existing REDD project initiatives in the area that have already contributed approximately 30 billion Tanzanian Shillings to Tanganyika district. This presents a promising opportunity for future initiatives under the SUSTAIN Eco project.

SUSTAIN Eco Project