 |
| Deputy Minister for Agriculture, Hussein Bashe (second right), speaks to journalists in Dar es Salaam recently, when NMB Bank inked a partnership agreement with Tanzania Agricultural Development Bank (TADB), whereby NMB will provide the financing while TADB will provide a 50 per cent loan guarantee. Second left is NMB's Acting Managing Director, Filbert Mponzi and first right is TADB Managing Director, Japhet Justine. First left is NMB Head of Agribusiness, Isaac Masusu. |
Tanzania Agricultural Development Bank, as the Administrator of the Smallholder Credit Guarantee Scheme (SCGS), signed the SCGS Agreement with NMB Bank PLC on 01st August 2018 to start operationalization of the fund.
As of to date, through the TADB Small Credit Guarantee Scheme (SCGS), NMB has disbursed a total of TZS 14.3 Billion, financed to thirty-two (32) different AMCOS that have a total of 14,310 individual member farmers engaged in the sugar cane, the cashew and the coffee subsectors from Coastal, Morogoro, Songwe, Arusha, Kilimanjaro, Lindi and Mtwara Regions.
For the month of September 2019 (only), NMB has approved and financed TZS 9,355,385,000 to 2,997 smallholder cashew nut farmers from Mtwara, Lindi, Ruvuma and Coast Regions through TADB SCGS. These farmers are in need of financial assistance to procure farming inputs for the new season.
Speaking at the press signing ceremony in Dar es Salaam yesterday, NMB Bank’s Acting Managing Director – Filbert Mponzi said the bank recognizes the important role the agriculture sector plays in the country’s economy and has taken deliberate efforts to expand financing and design products and services that strive to develop the sector.
“With the partnership we have entered today with TADB, we are willing to support the warehouse receipt system finance as guided by the government in the 2019/2020 season. We are in support of government’s efforts to developing agriculture,” Said Mr Mponzi.
TADB Managing Director – Japhet Justine commended the NMB Bank for their support in developing Agriculture and their support in the cashew nut value chain.
“I am impressed with the commitment we have entered today as it will truly help to develop the agriculture sector in the country and also contribute to the development of farmers economies,” said Mr. Justine. He further added that, “this initiative serves the purpose of TADB’s guarantee support which strives to mitigate the credit risk of underlying loans extended to the agricultural sector. Apart from NMB we are also working with other seven (7) banks under the same arrangement.”
The Small Holder Farmers Credit Guarantee Scheme aims to encourage financial institutions to increase their loans to smallholder farmers who, in the past years, have been side lined from the formal banking services. This will be achieved through provision of guarantees to Smallholder Farmers when they access loans from selected eligible banks.
As the administrator of the fund, to date, TADB has already disbursed 19.7 Billion to Eight (8) Banks including NMB. Our pipeline under review sits at TZS 56 Billion, supporting more than 10,795 Smallholder farmers in 22 Region across Tanzania namely; Kagera, Katavi, Dodoma Mtwara, Arusha, Kigoma, Njombe, Iringa, Mwanza, Mara, Shinyanga, Simiyu, Lindi, Mbeya, Songea, Songwe, Morogoro & Kilimanjaro,Coast, Singida, Manyara & Dar es Salaam regions engaged in 15 value chains. Furthermore, TADB has enabled some of the partners to start lending to the agriculture sector through this product and the support that TADB provides – in terms of capacity building – through this product. The scheme has also supported community banks likes Tandahimba Community Bank (TACOBA), Mufindi Community Bank (MUCOBA),UCHUMI Bank Ltd and other to serve their customers and raise funds.
Agriculture value chain forms over 25% of NMB Bank’s total portfolio. We will continue working with TADB to fulfill the government’s dream of transforming the agriculture sector and its overall contribution to the growth of the economy, and its industrialization agenda.
In 2016, NMB Bank launched the Agri-biashara campaign allocating over TZS 500 Billion to provide credit to agriculture in the country for the coming five (5) years ending in 2020. The finance solution that facilitates access to credit, helped farmers in achieving improved cultivation practices, higher yields and ultimately increased household income while increasing the export volumes of agriculture products.
Agriculture is the backbone of the country’s economy. It contributes about 70% of the rural household’s income, employs over 75% of the Tanzanians and contributes about 26% of the country’s GDP. Some 46% of the country’s land is suitable for agricultural production; yet only 19% of that is utilized. Growth of the sector is around 4% per annum, but there are crop subsectors with surprisingly large growth, where also export business in some cases is increasing rapidly. Although there are many issues still to be solved in the agricultural environment, the outlook is more than promising in many areas.
“With the partnership we have entered today with TADB, we are willing to support the warehouse receipt system finance as guided by the government in the 2019/2020 season. We are in support of government’s efforts to developing agriculture,” Said Mr Mponzi.
TADB Managing Director – Japhet Justine commended the NMB Bank for their support in developing Agriculture and their support in the cashew nut value chain.
“I am impressed with the commitment we have entered today as it will truly help to develop the agriculture sector in the country and also contribute to the development of farmers economies,” said Mr. Justine. He further added that, “this initiative serves the purpose of TADB’s guarantee support which strives to mitigate the credit risk of underlying loans extended to the agricultural sector. Apart from NMB we are also working with other seven (7) banks under the same arrangement.”
The Small Holder Farmers Credit Guarantee Scheme aims to encourage financial institutions to increase their loans to smallholder farmers who, in the past years, have been side lined from the formal banking services. This will be achieved through provision of guarantees to Smallholder Farmers when they access loans from selected eligible banks.
As the administrator of the fund, to date, TADB has already disbursed 19.7 Billion to Eight (8) Banks including NMB. Our pipeline under review sits at TZS 56 Billion, supporting more than 10,795 Smallholder farmers in 22 Region across Tanzania namely; Kagera, Katavi, Dodoma Mtwara, Arusha, Kigoma, Njombe, Iringa, Mwanza, Mara, Shinyanga, Simiyu, Lindi, Mbeya, Songea, Songwe, Morogoro & Kilimanjaro,Coast, Singida, Manyara & Dar es Salaam regions engaged in 15 value chains. Furthermore, TADB has enabled some of the partners to start lending to the agriculture sector through this product and the support that TADB provides – in terms of capacity building – through this product. The scheme has also supported community banks likes Tandahimba Community Bank (TACOBA), Mufindi Community Bank (MUCOBA),UCHUMI Bank Ltd and other to serve their customers and raise funds.
Agriculture value chain forms over 25% of NMB Bank’s total portfolio. We will continue working with TADB to fulfill the government’s dream of transforming the agriculture sector and its overall contribution to the growth of the economy, and its industrialization agenda.
In 2016, NMB Bank launched the Agri-biashara campaign allocating over TZS 500 Billion to provide credit to agriculture in the country for the coming five (5) years ending in 2020. The finance solution that facilitates access to credit, helped farmers in achieving improved cultivation practices, higher yields and ultimately increased household income while increasing the export volumes of agriculture products.
Agriculture is the backbone of the country’s economy. It contributes about 70% of the rural household’s income, employs over 75% of the Tanzanians and contributes about 26% of the country’s GDP. Some 46% of the country’s land is suitable for agricultural production; yet only 19% of that is utilized. Growth of the sector is around 4% per annum, but there are crop subsectors with surprisingly large growth, where also export business in some cases is increasing rapidly. Although there are many issues still to be solved in the agricultural environment, the outlook is more than promising in many areas.
No comments:
Post a Comment