Mwanza: How firewood use and climate change drive school absenteeism

Mwanza. Despite progress in reducing school absenteeism and improving attendance rates across Mwanza Region, challenges linked to climate change and reliance on unsustainable cooking energy continue to disrupt learning environments.

For many low-income families, firewood remains the primary cooking fuel. This reality forces children, particularly girls, to spend long hours collecting firewood instead of attending classes on time.

Expressing a daily struggle, Siwema Alex, a Form One student living in Bulale in Buhongwa ward at Nyamagana district, explains that her family depends almost entirely on firewood because charcoal and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) are too costly.

“At home, we mostly use firewood because a bag of charcoal costs at least Sh1,000, which is not enough for a family with high food needs. Gas is even more expensive, and we simply cannot afford it,” she says.

As the eldest child, Siwema assists her mother in gathering firewood and preparing meals for her younger siblings. As a result, she often arrives late to school or misses lessons altogether.

“Firewood is usually free in nearby forests or from dried trees. Even when we have to buy it, the cost is not as high compared to gas. So even though we wish to use clean energy, our financial situation doesn’t allow us,” she adds.

Her mother Kulwa Missango, speaking with frustration, says she dreams of a future where her children never miss school because of firewood.

“If we were to get a gas cylinder, the problem would still be refilling costs. If the government reduces prices, many of us would switch. But for now, economic hardship forces us to continue relying on firewood,” she says.

Climate change and students’ wellbeing

Beyond energy challenges, climate change itself is disrupting students’ lives. Child reporters from the Mwanza Youth and Children’s Network (MYCN) note that erratic weather patterns have negatively affected community livelihoods and school attendance.

Samweli Fides, a pupil at Magaka Primary School in Ilemela District, describes the struggles faced by families depending on farming, fishing, and livestock keeping.

“During floods or droughts, crops are destroyed, animals die due to lack of pasture, and fish stocks shrink. This reduces household income and leaves children without basic needs, including food and school fees. This attribute to higher cost of living including cooking energy,” he explains.

According to Samweli, climate shocks directly affect children’s health and education.

 “Previously, a family could afford three meals a day, but now some survive on just one. This hunger makes it hard for students to concentrate in class.”

The perspective of education authorities

Mwanza Regional Education Officer, Martine Nkwabi, acknowledges that such challenges contribute to absenteeism.

“When a family cannot afford firewood and it falls on a child to collect it, education will inevitably suffer. In addition, droughts and declining rainfall lead to dried-up water sources. Many schools depend on boreholes and wells, and when these run dry, poor sanitation conditions cause students to drop out or skip school,” he says.

Nkwabi reveals that the government has begun measures to transition schools to cleaner energy.

“Out of 27 boarding schools with Forms Five and Six, only two are still using firewood. Starting this year, these schools will also switch to gas. However, most primary and ordinary secondary schools still cook lunch using firewood, though we are working on awareness programs to encourage the shift,” he explains.

He adds that absenteeism has multiple drivers which are family struggles, school conditions, and students’ own behaviour but insists that family circumstances play the largest role.

“Families contribute to more than 60 percent of absenteeism. Children are often sent to fetch water or firewood, while poverty exacerbates the situation. In addition, harsh punishments in some schools create unfriendly environments that push students away,” Nkwabi notes.

Due to ongoing reforms, he says absenteeism has dropped significantly, from 21 percent in 2020 to an average of 3.2 percent today.

 “Our target is to reach one percent or even zero by the end of this year,” he declares.

Environmental Interventions

To mitigate these challenges, Mwanza local councils plant at least one million trees annually, especially in school compounds.

“Since 2021, we have constructed 37 new primary and secondary schools. Environmental conservation, including tree planting, has been integrated into all these projects,” says Nkwabi.

Meanwhile, Nuru Massanja, Project Officer for the Child-Centred Climate Change Adaptation Programme in Mwanza, highlights findings from a 2024/25 pilot project in Ilemela and Nyamagana districts.

The project identified water scarcity and food shortages as the two biggest contributors to school absenteeism.

“Children are sent every morning to fetch water before going to school. Many arrive late, while others skip class altogether. Hunger is another huge challenge. Some students leave school at midday to eat at home or on farms and never return that day,” he explains. Parents in areas like Sangabuye and Kayenze told researchers that droughts and reduced fish stocks have devastated family incomes.

 “When crops fail and fish become scarce, families cut down meals. Children end up too hungry to focus on learning, or they are forced to engage in income-generating activities instead of attending school,” Massanja says.

Mwanza’s energy transition: Challenges and hope

Data from the Energy Access Situation Report 2020/21 shows that more than 85 percent of Tanzanian households rely on firewood and charcoal for cooking a trend also evident in Mwanza due to widespread poverty.

Specifically, around 63.5 percent depend on firewood, while 26.2 percent use charcoal. Nationwide, fewer than 10 percent of households have access to clean cooking energy.

In December 2024, Mwanza’s regional authorities announced that the government, through the Rural Energy Agency (REA), had begun distributing subsidized LPG cylinders.

Each district received 3,255 cylinders, totalling 19,530 for the region, all sold at half the normal market price.

Public institutions are also leading by example. Butimba Prison has already transitioned to cleaner energy sources such as LPG and alternative charcoal, an initiative praised by REA as proof of government commitment to sustainable energy.

At the national level, Tanzania has set a bold target: by 2034, 80 percent of households should use clean cooking energy, under the National Clean Cooking Strategy (2024–2034).

This story is sponsored by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.If you have any comments about this story, send us a message via WhatsApp at: 0765 864 917.