US Chamber of commerce opens doors in Dar

In a move aimed at improving business links with Tanzania, the US ambassador Alfonso E. Lenhardt has officially launched the first American Chamber of Commerce in Dar es Salaam. The American Chamber of Commerce grew out of the American Business Association (ABA), which was established in 2005 to promote flow of trade and investment between the US and Tanzania, as well as to facilitate business and investment opportunities for U.S.-affiliated companies in Tanzania. The Chamber which will also encourage cultural interaction between American and Tanzanian businesspeople was launched on Thursday. It will provide a forum to address common business issues, a US embassy press statement issued yesterday says. Speaking at the opening ceremony, Ambassador Lenhardt said Tanzania's economy has tremendous potential, as demonstrated by strong growth and increases in foreign direct investment, especially from the U.S., over the last decade. He noted that opportunities are plentiful in energy, infrastructure, tourism, telecommunications, real estate, construction, commercial agriculture, and minerals. He said Tanzania could also serve as a regional transport and shipping hub for the East African Community. However, the ambassador noted that Tanzania must continue improving its business climate in order to realize its full economic potential. U.S. companies view Africa, with more than one billion people, as an important market for American products, the press statement said.

US ambassador accredited in Tanzania Mr. Alfonso E. Lenhardt

The transformation of ABA into a full American Chamber of Commerce is a significant step in encouraging Tanzanian business climate improvement efforts, promoting economic growth, and strengthening the growing business ties between the U.S. and Tanzania, the statement said. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce, of which the Tanzanian American Chamber of Commerce is now a member, is the world's largest business federation representing more than 3 million businesses and organizations of every size, sector, and region. Trade links between Tanzania and the US were not vibrant in the past, although there is a steady improvement, according to statistics obtained from the Office of the United States Trade Representative Executive Office of the US President. “Tanzania is currently our 136th largest goods trading partner with $208 million in total (two way) goods trade during 2009,” the office says on its official website. “Goods exports [to Tanzania] totaled $158 million; Goods imports totaled $49 million. The U.S. goods trade surplus with Tanzania was $109 million in 2009.” Tanzania was the United States' 130th largest goods export market in 2009, when U.S. goods exports to Tanzania in 2009 were $158 million, down 6.6% ($11 million) from 2008, but up 223% from 1994 (the year prior to Uruguay Round). The top export categories (2-digit HS) in 2009 were: Machinery ($41 million), Miscellaneous Textile Articles ($18 million), Milling/Malt/Starch ($15 million), Electrical Machinery ($12 million), and Vegetables (pinto beans) ($11 million), the office says. U.S. exports of agricultural products to Tanzania totaled $32 million in 2009. Tanzania was the United States' 136th largest supplier of goods imports in 2009, the office reports. U.S. goods imports from Tanzania totaled $49 million in 2009, down 11.5% ($6 million) from 2008, but up 231% over the last 15 years. The five largest import categories in 2009 were: Spices, Coffee and Tea (coffee) ($24 million), Precious Stones (gemstones) ($8 million), Edible Fruit and Nuts (cashew nuts) ($6 million), Lac and Vegetable Saps (pectates) ($3 million), and Miscellaneous Grain and Seed ($2 million). U.S. imports of agricultural products from Tanzania totaled $34 million in 2009, with the leading categories including coffee (unroasted) ($23 million), and tree nuts ($6 million). U.S. foreign direct investment (FDI) in Tanzania was $21 million in 2005.
SOURCE: THE GUARDIAN

ICRC decries misuse of red cross emblem

International Committee of the Red Cross head of mission Mathias Weinreich has said that improper use of humanitarian emblems is inconsistent with the international humanitarian law. Weinreich made the remarks in Dar es Salaam recently, when addressing senior editors to acquaint them with the Red Cross missions and its mandate. He said any misuse of the emblem diminished its protective value and undermined the effectiveness of humanitarian assistance. Weinreich cited the misuse of the Red Cross emblem by unauthorized people or bodies like commercial enterprises, pharmacists and private doctors, saying they were inconsistent with Red Cross’s fundamental principles. He says in other countries like Germany and France the law was very strict for those who misused the emblem, but in other countries there was no law which prohibited people or institutions from using the emblem. “It is difficult to eliminate this problem even in Tanzania because there is no law, which prohibits the use of the emblem by unauthorised people. What we need to do is to educate people on the emblem,” he said. According to him, some people might make money using the emblem, thus making a false impression about the Red Cross. Weinreich noted that the Red Cross and Red Crescent emblems were entitled to full respect under the international law although sometimes were perceived as having cultural, religious or political connotations. “This jeopardises the protection they confer on the victims of armed conflict, medical services of the armed forces and humanitarian personnel,” he noted. To overcome the problem, an idea of introducing an additional emblem that would be acceptable to all societies and states was put forward. In 2005, a diplomatic conference recognised the Red Crystal, which is free from any religious, cultural or political connotations, as a distinctive emblem alongside the Red Cross and Red Crescent.
SOURCE: THE GUARDIAN

Tanzania: oxen project proving a boon in tobacco farming

CHILD labour is a problem in tobacco farming the world over, and it is estimated that millions of children of school-going age either do not go to school at all, or their attendance is erratic, because they are engaged on the farm. Tanzania has not been spared this problem. However, the number of children involved in tobacco farming in the country is projected to shrink considerably after stakeholders in the tobacco sub-sector developed measures designed to overhaul the extant farming methods by shifting from labour-intensive, hand-hoe cultivating to farming using draught animals. At the end of the day, so to speak, this should see to the reduction of the number of people employed in tobacco production – even, at the same time, increasing yields and productivity among tobacco farmers! One of the pioneers of the envisaged changes is the Morogoro-based Alliance-One Tobacco Tanzania Limited (AOTTL), a member of one of the largest independent leaf tobacco merchants in the world, Alliance-One International, Inc. of North Carolina, USA. The firm's core business has been the commercial processing of tobacco.
However, after realizing that tobacco farmers in Tanzania were producing little through hand-hoe farming – mainly because they lacked modern-day technologies – AOTTL came out with an 'Oxen Project' in 2004 through which local farmers are provided with ploughs, ridging equipment and oxen as draught animals.
Oxen are trained at for AOTTL Centres, after which they are sold to farmers on credit, the main objective being to improve tobacco cultivation in the country. Speaking to Business Times in an exclusive interview at AOTTL's Centre in Tabora recently, the firm's Corporate Affairs manager, Hamis Liana, said "one of our major goals is to enable farmers to send their children to school and not turn them into farm labourers."

An African child peeling cocoayarm. Child labour is still a problem in most African countries.

Stressing that “Education is a priority at Alliance-One,” Liana said: “we want to keep children in school not working as employees in tobacco farming."
Apart from freeing school-age children from child labour woes, AOTTL has also undertaken measures associated therewith. For instance, the company donated about Tsh55.0 million in the period January to June this year for the construction of classrooms and teachers houses, as well as the purchase of school desks and sports equipment in the tobacco-growing areas of , Urambo, Kahama and Manyoni.
According to Liana, AOTTL introduced the Oxen Project to also enable farmers “to spend more time learning and practicing new agricultural techniques;, and reduce the farmers labour force currently expended in land preparation. It would also meet demand for all kinds of transport at the farm level – as well as increase farmer proficiency, and expand areas for tobacco and subsistence crops farming Use of oxen in tobacco farming has increased crop yields by 34 per cent over and above what was being produced using the hand-hoe, Liana says. Virtually attesting to all that, a tobacco farmer of Mwongozo Village, Ulyankulu District in Tabora Region, Abdalah Dewji (32), told Business Times that the AOTTL Oxen Project “has been a blessing for me and my family.” Dewji said that, using the hand-hoe, his family was able to produce around 400kgs of tobacco on his one-acre plot in 2004/05. After turning to oxen-farming, the family was able to increase their farm to 20 acres, from which they now produce around 21,000kgs of the commodity, thereby earning about Tsh50 million. This, he reiterated, is 'compliments' of pairs of oxen sold to the family on credit by AOTTL. "This method of farming has enabled me to send my children to good international schools where they are receiving quality education. I have also dug a deep well for fresh water as you can see – and from which my neighbours fetch water free of charge," he exulted. Apart from producing tobacco, Dewji also cultivates food crops such as maize and cassava. This year he cultivated 15 acres, from which he harvested 220x100kg bags of maize. Asked if oxen-farming has been a solution to all his problems, Dewji said there were some challenges remaining to be overcome – including, especially lack of fertilizers and pesticides.
“Farmers in Tabora continue to suffer from lack of fertilizers and pesticides, which has been made worse after the change of policy whereby the Government is now responsible for supplying fertilizers to Societies,” he said. "Formerly, we were getting fertilizers from AOTTL without problem. But, after that policy was adopted, we have been badly affected. The Societies are not ready or willing to incorporate and support independent farmers like me as a matter of course,” Dewji says, adding that, if and when they access fertilisers, this happens rather late in the season. “When get fertilizers, they come late, sometimes three months after planting,” Dewji explains. “For instance, " I planted six acres with tobacco on the November 5 last year – and the fertilizers came three months too late!" In fact, all the farmers who talked to Business Times in Tabora of delays in the delivery of agricultural inputs whose supplies are associated with the Government! They almost all to a man called for a review of the new system, with some going as far as asking the Government to allow Alliance-One Tanzania to resume supplying agricultural inputs to farmers as they were doing so well in the past.

SOURCE: BUSINESS TIMES

THIS MODE OF TRANSPORT SHOULD BE STOPPED

I was astonished when I came across this photograph, and I am still wondering if these people were merely playing a concert, or the drama portrays a real action on the road. I thought such kind of business could only be found in third world countries where there is an accute shortage of transport facilities, now people use motorcycles as a mode of transport. But despite of the liberalisation of transport industry, this is now too much and unbelievable. It's very wonderful and the action must be frouned upon. The scene is more than the so-called "Mshikaki" as it is used to be commonly referred to here in Tanzania. BUT DO NOT TRY IT, IT IS TOO DANGEROUS.

Worn out tires, causes accidents

I recently traveled to Mwanza from Dar es Salaam with a famous Champion bus Service based in Dodoma, when one tyre burst and good enough this was a hind tyre. The situation caused fear among the passengers who when the bus stopped at Dodoma, some of us inspected the remaining tires to find out if they were safe, only to see that almost all of the tires were out of order. We hurriedly reported the matter to traffic police who ordered the bus to a police station.

Champion bus on I was travelling has its burstr tire exchangfed at Dumila 12 away from Morogoro town.


The bus at police station in Dodoma when some passengers found some irregularities with other tires when it stopped at Dodoma

The owners looked for the new tires and exchanged them with the worn out ones at the police. The work that consumed us a lot of time to proceed with our journey. It has been a common practice to see that most transporters in Tanzania do not value the life of their passengers an aspect that there has been a occurred a number of accidents in most parts of the country.

Lack of industries impends local farmers in Tanzania

The orange picking season is here again, but it’s too discouraging to note that, vendors of this product do not have a suitable market to sell their products. But this issue has to be looked at critically by the government through the ministry concerned of trade and industry.

Orange traders at Ubungo near TANESCO power supply station.


Orange traders with their products spread on the ground at Tabata relini in Dar es Salaam.

However, the Minister in charge of the Ministry, Dr. Mary Nagu has been pressuring the government to at least establish canned industries in order to empower local farmers as well as have locally manufactured fresh juice from locally produced orange fruits but seemingly the ideas have been dashed off. The government seems to have tuirned a blind eye to small scale farmers in the country. It is also very shameful for a country like Tanzania which is so productive and lacks a reliable market for its products as seen above here traders have to spread down their products for their potential customers to pick. Why shouldn’t the government take an action of creating a conducive environment for small scale farmers and instead take a keen interest to outside investors?

Very fantastic and chaotic as 800 CCM aspirants in Mara region eye civic and parliamentary seats

A total of 800 Chama Cha Mapinduzi (CCM) members in Mara Region are Vying for civic and parliamentary seats. Mara CCM regional secretary Ndekubali Ndeng’aso said a total of 53 CCM members eyed seven constituencies in the region. He noted that in the race, 18 CCM members were for parliamentary seats, 546 for civic seats, while 148 were for parliamentary special seats and 263 for council special seats. However, the CCM secretary explained that the process went on smoothly although in some areas, ward officers increased nomination fees. “In Mwisenge ward in Musoma town, for instance, ward leaders raised civic nomination fee to 565,000/- from the official 10,000/-,” Ndeng’aso said. The secretary explained that Musoma Urban constituency had attracted 9 aspirants with the incumbent MP Vedastus Mathayo facing stiff opposition from retired CCM regional chairman Enock Mwita Chambiri. Musoma Rural constituency has attracted 11 contestants with fierce competition pitying the incumbent Nimrod Mkono and former MP Dr Charles Magoti.

Mr. Nimrod Mkono, the incumbet member of parliament for Musoma rural

In Mwibara constituency, a total of 10 members have picked nomination forms with Charles Muguta Kajege, who is defending his seat on hot heels with East Africa Community employee Kangi Rugora. In Bunda constituency, Minister for Food Security and Cooperatives Steven Wasira is competing for the parliamentary nomination with a businessman, Giche Marwa, while in Serengeti, four members took nomination forms including the incumbent with stiff competition from Kagera regional health officer Dr Steven Kebwe and a private lawyer practicing in Mwanza Steven Magoiga. According to the CCM secretary, eight aspirants are competing in Rorya constituency with Koryo ward councillor Lameck Airo challenging his stepfather, Prof Philemon Sarungi. Tarime constituency has attracted five contestants with a fierce challenge expected from Nyambari Nyangwine and Kwimba district commissioner Christopher Kangoye trying his luck.

SOURCE: THE GUARDIAN