Africa Guardian

By Anthony Muchoki

Tanzania’s farmers are facing the prospect of seeing their bumper harvest turn into a bumper post-harvest loss, unless urgent measures are taken.

The use of improved seeds, better management techniques and ideal climate conditions has given Tanzania’s farmers a ‘good year problem’ more grain than market options and storage solutions.
The bumper harvest is a sign the Kilimo Kwanza initiative, which was launched by President Jakaya Kikwete in 2009, as a central pillar in achieving the country’s Vision 2025.

Kilimo Kwanza (meaning Transforming Agriculture), has received significant investment from the government, donors, and private sector. This investment is paying off, with the production of staple crops such as maize, cassava and rice all increasing. While the initiative is starting to bear fruits, the lack of markets and access to adequate storage solutions could mean much of this fruit goes to waste.

The National Food Reserves Agency (NFRA) has capacity to buy 240,000 metric tons of grains (including maize and rice) and Agriculture, Food Security and Cooperatives Minister Christopher Chiza has admitted that the NFRA cannot afford buy all of the surplus maize and rice.

The MP for Kigoma North & Chairman of Parliamentary Public Accounts Committee (PAC), Hon Zitto Kabwe, has put the value of the surplus maize at $470m and says that it is more than the combined value of cotton, tea, cashew and coffee exports. He has called on the government to do away with export permits, so that farmers can freely sell their produce abroad.

Despite Kenya, Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) offering a ready market for the produce, the access to these markets remains problematic, with farmers’ groups unable to exploit them on their own.
During a recent media tour organized by Alliance for Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA) in the Southern highlands, farmers alleged that the few traders with export permits, were buying at exploitive prices.

“Farmers’ groups lucky enough to have sold to NFRA even at low prices are better off. Those of us who have not managed have to depend on middle-men with export permits buying at below NFRA rates. If this continues I would rather plant threes on my land,” said Danford Nyagawa of Mambegu village in Wanging’ombe district, who has been desperately trying to sell his 50 bags of maize that were not bought by NFRA.

Thanks to the surplus production, prices for maize have plummeted. According to Famine Early Warning Network, food prices are low in both unimodal and bimodal areas.

In Rukwa and Katavi a 100 kg bag of maize is now being sold at Tsh15,000 ($9) from Tsh45,000 ($27).
According to the Chairman of Ruvuma Farmers Association, Tito Mbilinyi, maize has started to rot, and if markets access continues to a problem, in the future farmers will only produce for self consumption.

Reacting to the big harvests, lack of market access and inadequate warehousing, the Communication Director for Alliance for Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA), Mrs. Sylvia Mwuchili, called for urgent steps to ensure Tanzania becomes a net exporter of food crops the country is best suited to producing.
“Tanzania faces an unprecedented opportunity in becoming regional net exporter of maize and allied products. The public and private sectors need to unite and use the opportunity to make a lasting improved economic prospects for smallholder farmers,” Mwuchili said.

2014 has seen the country have overwhelming maize harvests in breadbasket regions, and amidst limited access to markets and shortage of warehousing. This has left smallholder farmers to store their produce in improvised warehouses and open fields, exposing the produce to destruction unless bought out quickly.

Since 2007 AGRA had invested over USD45 million in support of the green revolution drive in the country, including support of introduction of new maize varieties by government owned research intuitions. Many other donors, including USAID, Bills and Melinda Gates Foundation, also some western governments have invested substation support to make Kilimo Kwanza work, for the good of the rural farmers.

According to veteran agriculturist, Dr Mary Mgonja, who is also AGRA Country Head in Tanzania, the good harvests could be attributed to the awakening of farmers into innovations and technology, thanks to the increased investments by the government, donors and private sector to agriculture.

“More farmers have adopted use of new varieties and also use fertilizers,” she said adding that without smallholders farmers’ efforts, the government and development partners support can easily go down the drain. “I salute our small holder maize farmers, more than ever they are doing a great job. We need to ensure there are no road blocks to their prosperity,” she added.

In Tanzania household post harvest maize losses are in the range of 15-40 per cent, which often forces households to sell their maize immediately after harvest, when prices are usually at their lowest.