Tanzania's new plan to boost food reserves

Dar es Salaam.  As the government targets to reach a storage capacity of 3 million tonnes by 2030, President Samia Suluhu Hassan on Sunday revealed plans to introduce a food security bond.

She said funds raised through this bond will be used to capacitate the National Food Reserve Agency (NFRA) to pay farmers fairly and on time.

President Hassan spoke in Katavi Region as she was launching a Sh14 billion silos project.

She emphasised the importance of expanding storage capacity to support growing trade with neighbouring countries.

“We are planning to store 3 million tonnes by 2030. We are moving towards agribusiness, the youth need jobs, and those jobs will come from agriculture,” she said.

Tabling the 2024/2025 ministerial budget in May this year, Agriculture minister Hussein Bashe had revealed that food production for the 2022/2023 agricultural season met the food demand of 16,390,404 tonnes for the year 2023/2024, resulting in a surplus of 4,011,611 tonnes.

Consequently, the nation has achieved 124 percent food self-sufficiency compared to 114 percent in 2022/2023. Furthermore, food self-sufficiency is expected to reach 130 percent by 2025.

The minister also mentioned that the ministry is in the final stages of negotiations with the governments of Zambia, Zimbabwe, and Malawi to sell maize through NFRA and the Cereal and Other Produce Board (CPB).

“The government encourages crop traders in the country to sell food crops in these countries due to the available market opportunities,” he said.

Mr Bashe had revealed that the ministry, through NFRA had also plans to purchase 1,150,000 tonnes of grains to strengthen the country’s food security.

Another significant milestone was the Sugar Act No.6 of 2001 amendment in the 2024 finance bill, enabling NFRA to purchase and store sugar in the National Food Reserve to address market shortages.

During the launch on Sunday, Mr Bashe announced that the government has also started using a digital system for purchasing farmers’ crops.

“We received complaints that farmers felt cheated at purchasing centers, so we implemented a digital system,” he said.

With the digital system, farmers receive their weight information on their phones and get a printout instantly--- same for the NFRA director at the headquarters who will receive daily purchase reports, stock updates, and the opening balance for the next day.

During her visit to the region, President Hassan also toured Karema Port in Lake Tanganyika where she described it as a strategic port area for stimulating the socio-economic growth of people in Tanzania and those from the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Zambia, and Burundi.

“I know the potential economic viability of Karema Port and its multiplier effects on societies. It is a very strategic connection to DRC, Zambia, and Burundi,” said, noting that the port was instrumental in stimulating the business growth of four counties.

Speaking here during the closing of the ruling CCM’s Parents’ wing (Jumuiya ya Wazazi) celebrations on July 13, President Hassan said the port would continue to be the center of businesses among people of four counties sharing Lake Tanganyika.

“I know and I heard your desire to get a passenger boat. I cannot promise now until the work going on at other ports is completed. But, we (Government) will work on it,” President Hassan explained.