As a result, the inhabitants have encountered serious food and income insecurity and DIRA has had to provide emergency food to the affected populations. However, when the maize crop fails, they find themselves without food and money to purchase food, making their situation very precarious.
Pyrethrum is a daisy-like flower that can be used for production of a natural insecticide.
It is well-suited to the soil, elevation, climate and rainfall of these areas. Because it is a perennial, it does not require a lot of work once it is planted. It is a natural insecticide, and therefore doesn't require pesticides to grow it. It also can be manufactured into a number of useful products, including a natural pesticide for cereals, a malaria control spray, and de-licing medicine for children. Pyrethrum was previously an important cash crop in Tanzania, but local demand for pyrethrum dried up in the early 1995 after the government cut subsidies to the sole processing plant.