Tanzania: Kikwete Urges Agricultural Transformation

THE government is taking necessary steps to make sure that agricultural sector is transformed through appliance of modern technology, irrigation, research and financing.

President Jakaya Kikwete said this in Dar es Salaam on Tuesday evening while addressing the Southern African Confederation of Agricultural Unions (SACAU) Regional Conference.

"The government will continue with efforts to develop the agriculture sector in the country as a way to achieve sustainable development," he said. President Kikwete said farmers in Tanzania should be assured of the positive measures that the government is taking to improve the sector in a bid to ensure sustainable food security.

The conference under the theme "Financing Agriculture Transformation beyond Food Security" was organised by Agricultural Council of Tanzania (ACT) in collaboration with SACAU. The conference attracted about 200 participants from 14 Southern Africa Development Cooperation (SADC) countries and some representatives from regional agriculture organisations from other parts of Africa.

He mentioned initiatives such as the Southern Agriculture Growth Corridor of Tanzania (SAGCOT), as the best example of the government commitment toward agriculture transformation. "I consider the theme of the meeting to be relevant and opportune indeed.

It is a statement of fact that agriculture has a very crucial role to play in the development of African nations and its people," he said. He added that African agriculture is predominantly smallholder with the hand hoe remaining the dominant farming tool, overly dependent on rain and very little irrigation as well as dependence on traditional seeds which yield poorly.

President Kikwete named the launch of the 14 year's programme-Agriculture Sector Development Programme (ASDP) in 2006 aimed at overcoming obstacles to agricultural growth as a milestone in Tanzania. He emphasised the role of private sector, saying the sector is investing in large scale commercial farming, as well as manufacturing of agricultural inputs and farm implements.

"The government will continue with its primary responsibility of creating enabling investment environment, provide extension services and research and together with development partners support the development of large-scale irrigation schemes and rural infrastructure," he said.

He added that, 'Kilimo Kwanza' identified the government, private sector, donors, smallholder farmers and farmers associations as indispensable and inseparable partners. "As we are now talking, the government, donors, private sector and smallholder farmers are working together to invest 2.4bn US dollars over a period of 20 years that will turn a total of 350,000 hectares into profitable production," he said.

He added that in the process, 420,000 new employment opportunities would be created in the agricultural value chain and expected to produce surplus maize, rice, sugar, pulses among others as well as generating an annual income of 1.2bn US dollars and lift 2 million people out of poverty.

"We can win the battle of eradicating income poverty and hunger. It is very possible to produce enough food for ourselves and have huge surplus for export to the outside world," he said. Earlier, the Acting President of SACAU, Dr Theo de Sager said African farmers should change their mind set and see land as a tool to transform their lives through agro business investment.

He said that though African agriculture share some challenges but there is a way forward and that it was only through financing farmers that African agriculture can achieve total transformation. On his side, the board Chairman of ACT, Mr Salum Shamte said the president's move toward agriculture transformation must get support from other development stakeholders.

The conference sought to provide data regarding the global supply and demand projections of key agricultural commodities and highlight the opportunities and threats that this could present for farmers and agribusiness. It also looked at whether or not current agricultural financing arrangements are appropriate to transform the sector.

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