The African Development Bank (AfDB) has approved a $2.5m grant to support 10,000 small horticultural businesses in Tanzania. The grant will come from the Global Agriculture & Food Security Programme and will be used to support food system service providers in rural areas.

 

The project will allow small operators in Tanzania to improve the efficiency of their agricultural activities, substantially increasing the volume and quality of products per unit of surface area.

The programme aims to increase the production and marketing of horticultural products to mitigate the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic. It includes promoting sustainable and climate-smart agricultural and agro-ecological techniques and management strategies for biodiversity and landscapes. It will boost production, climate consultancy services and post-harvest management.

The grant will be implemented in four regions: the rural district of Morogoro, Mvomero district in Morogoro region; Wanging’ombe district in Njombe region, and Kaskazini ‘A’ and ‘B’ districts in Unguja, Zanzibar. It targets five value chains: spices such as cloves, cinnamon, ginger, black pepper and garlic; tomatoes; peas; green beans and potatoes.

Other components include building at least five climate-resilient facilities for sorting, classification, bulk packing, packaging and storage to reduce post-harvest losses. A multi-purpose, climate-resilient processing facility for spices will be established in the Morogoro district on the eastern side of the country to process spices for local and regional markets.

In the long term, the grant benefits should significantly impact other farmers, which should help more agricultural communities and the country as a whole.

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