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Serengeti tobacco farmers to get 1.6bn/-

MUGINI JACOB in Serengeti
Daily News; Thursday,February 05, 2009 @21:15

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Over 1,500 farmers in Serengeti district are expected to get 1.6bn/- from tobacco this season. Serengeti District Commissioner, Mr Edward ole Lenga, said yesterday that farmers in the district expect to harvest around 800 tonnes of tobacco.

Alliance One Tanzanian Ltd company is buying the cash crop through its branch office based in Mugumu town. " There is a big turn up of farmers selling tobacco to the Alliance One Tanzania and they are happy with the deal", said Mr Kolimba, refuting recent media reports which alleged that some tobacco growers were reluctant to sell their crop to that company.

He described the report as misleading, calling farmers to continue co-operating with the Morogoro-based tobacco firm, in developing tobacco growing in the district. He warned farmers against smuggling tobacco to the neighbouring Kenya via 'panya' routes, saying that those who would be caught doing so will be taken to task.

A total of 2,100 farmers were registered to grow tobacco in various villages in the district, but only 1,500 of them cultivated the crop this season. Alliance One Tanzania Ltd supports massive planting of trees in every village that has embarked on tobacco growing, to prevent environmental degradation in the area.

"Every farmer must have a forest of tree of not less that one hectare and the company is supporting production of tree seedlings", the District Commissioner added. There has been no reliable cash crop in Serengeti district for decades and the introduction of tobacco is expected to improve people's income. However, some residents of Serengeti have been depending on cotton as their major cash.

The Ministry of Agriculture, Food Security and Co-operatives has allowed farmers in Tarime and Serengeti Districts to embark on tobacco production, but on strict conditions that they should comply with the laid down procedures governing cultivation of the crop in the country. The conditions include refraining from exporting or smuggling raw tobacco and having sufficient trees.

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Is it so totally impossible to facilitate enhanced production of grain (corn, or even rice and wheat) in these areas instead of introducing or "embarking" on tobacco farming? Isn't this area in the Lake Zone (plus nearby rivers Mara and Gurumeti, etc)? Irrigation? Fertilisers? Soil husbandry education for the farmers - tree planting is but one!
N.B: Grain will serve both for food regionally, nationally, and equally well as cash crop for export. Grain will always have a reliable market and stave off food shortages like is sadly happening now and forseeably in the future, in view of envisaged population growths. Tobacco exports meanwhile face a stiff competition globally, and the market for it is likely to falter and fluctuate quite negatively with the well-intentioned and increasing anti-smoking driives. Noone is likely to miss or regret the absence of a single tobacco plant in Tanzania!

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