Dodoma
The Minister of Agriculture, Hussein Bashe, has announced eight achievements resulting from the political will and decision of the government led by President Samia Suluhu Hassan and parliament to increase the budget of the ministry for the fiscal year 2022/2023.
Bashe said that this decision has increased the value of exports of agricultural produce from $994.5 million in 2021 to $1.388 billion this year.
Presenting the estimates of revenue and expenditure of the ministry for the fiscal year 2023/2024 in parliament yesterday, Bashe told MPs that the budget increase has enabled the continuation of the construction and renovation of irrigation infrastructure covering an area of 95,005 hectares, and the construction of 14 reservoirs with a total capacity of 131,535,000 cubic meters.
He also informed MPs that 44,344.4 tons of good quality seeds were produced compared to 35,199.4 tons produced in the 2021/2022 fiscal year, and this increase has completed the construction of storage infrastructure with a capacity of 90,000 tons.
“Direct employment of approximately 486,634 has been generated from the implementation of agricultural development projects, and 5,889 motorcycles have been distributed to extension officers in 25 regions,” said Bashe.
He said that these funds have also increased the participation of the private sector in project implementation, agricultural trade, and the production of quality seeds.
Bashe told MPs that priorities and investment plans in the Ministry of Agriculture will remain the same for the next eight years, but strategies will continue to change according to the needs of the time.
He said that in the fiscal year 2022/2023, budget implementation has been faced with challenges, including climate change, which has affected the production of good quality seeds and food.
“This situation gives us a fundamental reason to allocate more funds for building irrigation infrastructure, researching and producing good and resilient seeds, building predictive capacity, dealing with plant and crop pests and disease outbreaks, and storing crops after harvesting,” said Bashe.
the following 8 achievements resulting from the increase in the agriculture budget:
- Increase in the value of exports of agricultural produce from USD 994.5 million in 2021 to USD 1.388 billion in 2023.
- Continuation of the construction and repair of irrigation infrastructure covering an area of 95,005 hectares and the construction of 14 reservoirs with a total capacity of 131,535,000 cubic meters.
- Increase in the production of high-quality seeds from 35,199.4 tons in 2021/2022 to 44,344.4 tons.
- Completion of the construction of storage infrastructure with a capacity of storing 90,000 tons.
- Creation of approximately 486,634 direct jobs from agricultural development projects implemented, distribution of 5,889 motorcycles to extension officers in 25 regions.
- Increased participation of the private sector in project implementation, agricultural trade, and production of high-quality seeds.
- Establishment of a loan program worth TZS 800 million for youth investment in agriculture.
- Improvement in the availability of affordable loans for farmers through the Agricultural Input Trust Fund and the Tanzania Agricultural Development Bank.