Go for Chinese market, cassava farmers urged
What you need to know:
- Prime Minister Kassim Majaliwa told Parliament in Dodoma on Friday that an agreement was signed in May 2018 between Tanzania and China to facilitate the business.
Dar es Salaam. China is ready to buy dried cassava from Tanzania.
Prime Minister Kassim Majaliwa told Parliament in Dodoma on Friday that an agreement was signed in May 2018 between Tanzania and China to facilitate the business.
His speech was availed to The Citizen in Dar es Salaam.
Already, 74 tonnes of dried cassava have been exported to China.
“The exported amount is smaller than China’s demand of more than 150,000 tonnes annually,” he said.
He has called upon Tanzanians to seize the opportunity to cultivate cassava. He also urged agriculture research institutions to help farmers to get high-yielding seeds and use advanced technology to increase production to meet the demand.
He also spoke about the government efforts of attracting more cassava processors. According to him, the warehouse receipt system has been successful in many areas as small and middle-sized farmers have been operating in groups and the situation has empowered them to sell their crops at high prices.
The system has cut crop losses due to poor storage.
“By using that system, the price of sesame has increased from Sh1,500 to Sh2,800 a kilo, eliminating the informal system known as ‘chomachoma’ that exploited farmers.”
He directed government officials to include more crops in the warehouse receipt system to protect farmers.
