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Envoy calls for action on unprocessed milk, fruits wastage
2006-09-25 08:53:34
By Tryphone Mweji
The Netherlands Ambassador to Tanzania, Karel Van Kesteren, has challenged Netherlands Alumni Association of Tanzania (NAAT) to come up with a solution to the 46 per cent unprocessed fruits and milk that goes to waste annually before reaching consumers.
Addressing the Alumni in Dar es Salaam at the weekend, Kesteren said Tanzanian experts and NAAT members must look into means of saving the wastage of unprocessed foods.
”What is wasted could earn and increase the volume of Tanzania’s exports by a very huge margin,” he said after he was asked to comment of what role should NAAT members play in serving the country.
The envoy said The Netherlands has sponsored about 3,000 Tanzanians since early 60s for studies under the umbrella of The Netherlands Fellowship Programmes.
”Tanzanians have been given opportunities in various studies ranging from Masters of Public Health, Animal Feed and Milk Processing, Finance Management, Water Engineering, Geo-Informatics and so on,” he said.
Ministry of Community Development, Gender and Children Affairs Permanent Secretary, Mariam Mwaffisi who was the chief guest at the occasion said: ”Provision of opportunities for Tanzanians to study in Netherlands has been one of the supports the country has extended to Tanzania.”
Mwaffisi, who studied in the Netherlands, said the sponsorship to Tanzanians by the Dutch government had significantly contributed to human resource capacity building in the country.
”It has alleviated shortage of skilled manpower,” she said.
Commenting on skilled Tanzanians who prefer to work outside Tanzania, Mwaffisi said the government was working hard to reverse the trend.
She said the government was working hard to create an enabling environment, when good packages in term of salaries and other benefits are put in place.
NAAT President Joshua Malago said the idea of establishing the association was supported by the Dar es Salaam embassy of the Netherlands in the year 2004.
The association launched last year, aims at creating a platform through which the alumni could meet, discuss and share experiences and ideas.
NAAT aims at creating a pool of resource persons in Tanzania government, Dutch enterprises and other organisations offering consultancy and recruitment services.
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