Private dealers accused of abusing subsidised fertiliser in Tanzania

The Tanzanian government has announced a countrywide crackdown on companies entrusted with supplying subsidised fertilisers to farmers but acting to the contrary.

President Jakaya Kikwete said the defaulting firms were reneging on a promise they had made to the government by denying farmers access to a crucial farm input and deserved no mercy. He said the government was subsidising the fertilisers so that the people could get them at a relatively low price; It was therefore unacceptable for the companies to seek to make huge profit margins from selling them.

The announcement followed complaints that unscrupulous private dealers were making super-normal profit from the supply of the subsidised fertilisers.

"These people are out to frustrate efforts by the government to improve agriculture and support farmers and cannot be spared. We have been receiving lots of complaints about firms and individuals using the fertilisers for unfair gain," declared the President.

Reliable sources say Kilimanjaro Region received 3,600 tonnes of subsidised fertilisers but most ended in the hands of a few selfish individuals. The region is expected to receive a total of 7,600 tonnes of fertilisers this year.

The crackdown is meant to trace the sources of the malpractices and identify all those involved in the scam because the scandal defeats the government`s resolve to cushion the agricultural sector, Kikwete explained.

IPP Media