Tanzania: Tobacco Farmers in Urambo Earn Over Sh30 Billion in One Season

Source from:  All Africa 11/18/2010

Tobacco peasants here have increased their earnings from Sh41 billion to Sh76.8 billion in a period of only one year. The acting district Agricultural, Livestock and Cooperative officer, Mr John Mtesigwa, said tobacco peasants in the district have almost doubled their earnings in one year and made the crop to be the most paying. Elaborating, he said tobacco peasants harvested a total of 15 million kilos which earned them Sh41.1 billion at the average of Sh2,500 per kilo during financial year 2008/09. The following financial year of 2009/10 peasants increased production from 15 million kilos to 23.7 million kilos which earned them Sh76.8 billion, increasing their annual income by more than Sh30 billion, he said. Mr Mtesigwa noted also that the income which peasants got from their produce has helped them to improve their lives. "Tobacco peasants in the district have earned a lot of money from the crop which has helped them to better their lives… now they have better life than before," he said. Apart from peasants earnings more money from tobacco, Mr Mtesigwa said the crop has also made the council to receive more cess. He explained that the council has benefitted from the crop by receiving cess amounting to more than Sh1.2 billion this year from less than average of Sh400 million in the past four years. He said the district has set the target of harvesting 26 million kilos of tobacco by 2012 adding that they have also put strategies to ensure that the target was realised. Urambo is one of districts which leads in the country in the production of tobacco. Enditem