Cotton dealers blamed for tampering with weighing scales #tanzania

Minister for Agriculture, Food Security and Cooperatives,
Eng. Chistopher Chiza has challenged Weighs and
Measures Agency (WMA) and the Tanzania Bureau of
Standards (TBS) to deal with unscrupulous cotton dealers
who tamper with weighing scales at the expense of farmers.
Opening the Annual Cotton Stakeholders meeting on
Saturday, Minister Chiza blamed the two authorities for
remaining adamant while farmers keep on complaining
about theft through tampered weigh machines.
He said the cotton sub-sector was now facing a lot of
challenges resulting in its poor contribution to the economic
development, adding all stakeholders are to share the
blame and wake up.
"It is now common that problems facing the crops are all
brought to the ministry while there are regulators who are
legally empowered to take action and solve them.
WMA are to deal with the tampering of cotton weighs," said
the irked minister. According to the minister, the cotton,
popularly referred to as 'white gold' should immediately
regain its position in national income generating ratios, but
warned all parties concerned including the government
itself must play their part effectively.
He mentioned other challenges like application of inferior
seeds, inputs and insecticides calling for the Tanzania
Cotton Board (TCB) to provide clear guidance on those
areas.
On seeds, Eng. Chiza said he was aware that more than
15,000 cotton farmers suffered great loss last season for
using Quiton seeds ordering the Board to arrange the
compensastion to all affected farmers. He said there are a
lot of confusions on the quality of the Quiton seeds and that
it was up to TCB to make sure the company supplies
quality seeds and not otherwise.
Other issues raised by the minister included regular
complaints on the contract farming system which is now
tried in a number of cotton growing regions calling for more
farmers education on the same.
"Intensive seminars have to be conducted not in halls like
this but in the farmers villages and farms on the importance
of the contract farming and the government was ready to
inject some funds for that matter," he pledged.
He also asked cotton stakeholders to honour their financial
commitments to the Cotton Development Trust Funds
(CDTF) as the government injects 2bn/- into the Fund to
reduce its debit totalling 6bn/- The outgoing TCB Board
Chairman, Dr Festus Limbu, said low productivity is
seriously affecting the cotton sub-sector, citing regular
change of the prices in the world market as another snag.
He also blamed the dependency on rains only in absence of
irrigation technology and unrealiable availability of quality
inputs, as issues to be given required attention in solving
the problems facing the sector.
Mwanza Regional Commissioner (RC), Eng. Evalist Ndikilo,
said the cotton growing districts this year are expecting
good harvests of about 28,500 tones as opposed to last
season when only 23,000 tones were harvested.
"That is due to the application of modern techniques like
contract farming which is being implemented in Misungwi,
Kwimba and Sengerema districts," he said.