- Tanzania is intensifying efforts to shift from subsistence to commercial agriculture by tripling its agriculture budget and investing in new grain storage infrastructure.
- Recently, President Samia Suluhu Hassan launched the construction of 28 rural warehouses and announced plans to boost national grain storage capacity to 3 million tonnes by 2030 to address food insecurity and reduce post-harvest losses.
- With an anticipated bumper maize harvest, Tanzania is also engaging regional trade opportunities while tightening export restrictions to protect local farmers and stabilize prices.
Tanzania has reiterated its commitment to transitioning from subsistence farming to commercial agriculture. To achieve this ambitious goal, the country is scaling up its agricultural industry and is already anticipating a bumper harvest this season.
In line with this vision, Tanzania has significantly increased the budget for the Ministry of Agriculture. Notably, the ministry’s budget has tripled over the past three years—from 460 billion shillings (US$172 million) in the 2020/21 financial year to 1.248 trillion shillings (US$467 million) in the current fiscal year.
As part of efforts to commercialize the agriculture sector, the country has also announced plans to invest US$5.2 million in expanding its grain storage facilities. President Samia Suluhu Hassan laid the foundation stone for the construction of 28 grain storage warehouses at the Luhimba site in the Ruvuma region.
Warehouse investments to anchor commercial agriculture
According to media reports, the warehouses are being built in four district councils: Songea Municipality (1 warehouse), Songea District Council (11 warehouses), Madaba (9 warehouses), and Namtumbo (7 warehouses).
Speaking at the launch event, Tanzania’s Minister of Agriculture, Hon. Hussein Bashe, said: “These 28 warehouses mark the first phase of implementing the President’s directive to build 70 rural warehouses, each with a capacity of 1,000 tons—totaling 28,000 tons for the initial phase.”
The Ministry of Agriculture, through the National Food Reserve Agency (NFRA), has already begun utilizing five of the 28 warehouses to serve farmers, with five more expected to be completed in the coming weeks, he told the press.
The minister further noted that the NFRA will also build large-scale, modern warehouses—each with a capacity of 5,000 tons. “These warehouses will be constructed in five key crop-producing regions: Katavi, Rukwa, Ruvuma, Songwe, and Tabora,” he specified.
Addressing food insecurity
President Samia Suluhu Hassan, who made the announcement, said the move will help the country address food insecurity and reduce post-harvest losses. She added that Tanzania aims to increase its grain storage capacity to three million tonnes by 2030. The expanded capacity, she noted, will not only boost local food security but also support neighboring countries.
In this regard, she cited the example of Malawi’s National Food Reserve Agency, which recently announced plans to import between 9,000 and 20,000 metric tons (MT) of maize flour from Tanzania to mitigate soaring local maize prices. Malawi’s decision comes in response to a limited domestic supply that has fueled food inflation in the country.
President Samia made these announcements during her recent inspection of ongoing construction of modern silos and warehouses in Mpanda Municipality, Katavi Region. According to a press release issued by State House, the new facilities will enhance the region’s storage capacity from 5,000 tonnes to 28,000 tonnes.
“This project, worth US$5.2 million, will help the country address food insecurity and reduce post-harvest losses,” President Samia said in the statement. She also instructed the NFRA to designate the Katavi Region as a special independent zone for the purchase and storage of grains.
The President cautioned against price manipulation and emphasized the importance of fair pricing by crop dealers across the country during this year’s grain purchasing season. She also called on the regional government to collaborate with the NFRA to identify areas for expanding food storage projects and turn Katavi into a leading producer and reliable hub for food storage.
According to the media report, Tanzania expects to harvest over 10 million tonnes of maize during the upcoming season (mid-June to July). Farmers have been urged to explore markets in neighboring countries for any surplus.
“The country expects a bumper harvest, and the surplus will exceed the preliminary demand assessment for maize,” the press statement noted.
Tanzania produced 8.1 million tonnes of maize last year, against a domestic demand of 6 million tonnes—resulting in a surplus of 2.1 million tonnes available for export markets.
Restrictions on grain exports
In readiness for the anticipated bumper harvest, the NFRA is taking proactive measures to begin purchasing cereals from farmers as early as July, the report stated. “This initiative aims to secure strategic stockpiles while creating a market for the surplus crops,” it added.
Meanwhile, Tanzania has imposed restrictions on grain exports, while neighboring Kenya has prohibited the importation of various grains. Both countries are acting to protect their local farmers.
In retrospect, Tanzania exported $3.44 million worth of wheat last year, making it the 58th largest exporter of wheat globally. That same year, wheat was the 142nd most exported product from Tanzania. The main destinations for Tanzania’s wheat exports were Ethiopia ($2.85 million), Kenya ($581,000), and Uganda ($7,800), the report noted.
The fastest-growing export markets for Tanzanian wheat between 2022 and 2023 were Ethiopia and Kenya.
Conversely, in the same period, Tanzania imported $466 million worth of wheat, making it the 38th largest wheat importer globally. In that year, wheat was Tanzania’s second most imported product. The country primarily imported wheat from Russia ($312 million), Poland ($45.2 million), the United States ($32.6 million), Latvia ($28.9 million), and Ukraine ($22.5 million), the report detailed.
Tanzania’s fastest-growing wheat import markets include Russia, the United States, and Poland.
Disruptions in the global wheat market
It is worth noting that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 caused significant disruptions in the global wheat market, with serious implications for food prices and global food security.
According to media reports, during the 2022/2023 agricultural season, Tanzania’s food crop production reached 20 million tonnes—up from 17 million tonnes in the 2021/2022 season—reflecting a 19 per cent increase.
“Cereal production totaled 11.4 million tonnes, rising from 9.2 million tonnes, representing a 23.9 per cent increase. Non-cereal crop production reached 8.9 million tonnes, up from 7.9 million tonnes—a 13.1 per cent increase,” the report stated.
It also highlighted that maize production for the 2022/2023 season reached 8 million tonnes, up from 6.4 million tonnes the previous year—representing a 24.83 per cent increase.
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