Kagera. The Tanzania Coffee Board has distributed between 20 million and 22 million improved coffee seedlings to farmers nationwide as part of efforts to boost production and improve incomes for communities that depend on coffee farming.
Chairperson of the Tanzania Coffee Board, Aurelia Kamuzora, said the number of seedlings produced is expected to rise to 30 million in the 2026/27 financial year to ensure farmers have adequate access to quality planting materials.
“The production of improved seedlings will continue increasing to help farmers raise productivity and improve the quality of Tanzanian coffee in the international market,” said Prof Kamuzora during a tour of coffee projects in Kagera Region on May 14.
The board members, including Mwananchi Communications Limited Managing Director, Ms Rosalynn Mndolwa-Mworia, visited the AMIMZA coffee processing factory in Bukoba as part of a wider campaign aimed at encouraging coffee farming and promoting the production of internationally competitive coffee.
While visiting the JADI coffee seedling nursery in Muleba District, Prof Kamuzora urged farmers to adopt modern farming methods to improve yields and quality.
She said the government was continuing to implement strategies to increase the production of improved coffee seedlings in order to raise farmers’ earnings and support national economic growth through the cash crop.
The delegation also toured coffee farms and held discussions with farmers on challenges facing the sector, while emphasising the importance of using improved seedlings and following professional agricultural advice.
Kagera regional manager for the Tanzania Coffee Board, Edmond Zani, said the region distributed 13 million seedlings during the previous farming season.
He added that Kagera produces between 50,000 and 80,000 tonnes of coffee annually, making it one of Tanzania’s leading coffee-producing regions.
Meanwhile, chairperson of the youth coffee growers’ group in Makongora, Muleba District, Amstamiru Rugarabamu, said the youth project manages 300 hectares of coffee farms, with each participant cultivating one hectare containing more than 400 coffee trees.
He said the initiative was helping young people improve their livelihoods through coffee farming.
The board members also visited the JADI improved coffee seedling nursery, the 300-hectare youth coffee farm in Makongora, as well as the Kyeju factory and coffee farm in Muleba.
