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Govt to raise agricultural subsidy to 21bn/-
2006-05-16 07:32:11
By Guardian Reporter
The government has said it will increase fertiliser and seed subsidy from the current 7bn/- to 21bn/-, effective July this year.
Minister for Agriculture and Co-operatives Joseph Mungai said the subsidy would go up by 30 per cent subsidy in the next financial year.
Mungai broke the news at a meeting for Regional Commissioners and Regional Administrative Secretaries organised by the Prime Minister, Edward Lowassa.
The meeting was held at the Prime Minister’s Office in Dar es Salaam at the weekend.
Mungai said the government, in collaboration with a Norwegian company Yala, Sasakawa and Rockfeller Foundation would import 125,000 tonnes of fertilisers.
He, however, said that each region would be required to select agents to distribute the fertilisers to villages.
Mungai said: ’’President (Jakaya) Kikwete told us recently that we have not succeeded in improving agriculture because of poverty.
Let us change our mentality and revolutionise agriculture like using fertilisers and animal waste, like cow dung and follow instructions to use animal waste at an ideal time.’’
He told the RCs to supervise the introduction of new crops and commercial farming instead of depending on subsistence farming.
’’Lindi is capable of establishing palm tree farming to cover 15,000 hectares and each hectare is capable of producing five litres of diesel.
Rukwa wants to start growing jetropha for diesel. Be innovative when selecting the type of crops to grow in your regions,’’ noted Mungai.
Speaking at the meeting, the Prime Minister advised the Regional Commissioners to oversee the agricultural sector in the same way they do when building schools.
He told the RCs to avoid the business-as-usual attitude and instead should visit all districts to ascertain the situation on the ground.
’’Recently, the President wondered why Tanzania is always last in everything. Let us reach out to people and change this habit by showing that we can do something,’’ said Lowassa.
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