FUTURE BRIGHT FOR SUNFLOWER PRODUCERS

Dar es Salaam. Tanzania is on an ambitious mission of becoming an industrial economy by 2025 and edible oil production is among the key areas that need a fresh impetus.

A commendable stride has so far been made as the government strives to revive the sunflower sub-sector.

The government plans to maximise the production of sunflower oil through adoption of modern techniques to meet both national and international demands.

With this in mind, the government and the European Union (EU) recently signed a Trade Facility contract, which is worth Sh36.5 billion.

The multibillion deal is expected to bolster processing and value addition of agricultural products as well as minerals.

Agro-processing is regarded as one of the strategic sectors for industrialisation.

The European Union and the EAC, head of delegation Ambassador, Roeland van de Geer told The Citizen in a recent interview that they signed the contract with a view to increasing domestic production of sunflower oil in order to reduce imports.

The Sector Development Strategy 2016-2020 that was developed by the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment aims at increasing production and supply of good quality sunflower seed, which would guarantee increased oil production.

“Challenges remain in ensuring adequate supplies of good quality seeds for the cluster and ensuring that processing and handling comply with standards and food safety requirements among the processors,” he said.

“These are important and must be addressed to ensure that the products are acceptable and safe for consumption,” he said.

According to him, the programme intends to provide the necessary capacity building activities for several players and support institutions along the value chain so that they help in processing according to the required standards, ensure safety and that products are offered to the national and international markets.

He said following the signing of the contract, funds would be released upon completion of the on-going requisite administrative steps.

The Citizen