Therefore, the government Agency is currently working around the clock to revamp the farms for effective and efficient production of the much needed and quality seeds. In particular, ASA is also among the leading team of experts, which includes the Tanzania Agriculture Research Institute (TARI), Tanzania Official Seed Certification Agency (TOSCI), private sectors, Kigoma region Agriculture officials and the farmers to revamp the oil palm in Kigoma region and in the country at large. This is a follow-up to an implementation of the Prime Minister’s directives issued in July during his working tour in Kigoma region to sensitize production of the crop as a continuance of the Agriculture Sector Development Program phase two (ASDP II). Our Correspondent Gerald Kitabu interviewed the new ASA’s Chef Executive Officer, DR. Sophia Kasheng . Excerpts:

QUESTION: Briefly tell us about the government seed farms and their status.

ANSWER: ASA has eight seed farms of which we are using to produce different kinds of crops and among these farms we produce seeds for different varieties of cereal crops such as maize, rice and sorghum, we do also produce cassava, vegetables, sunflower and sesame as oil crops seeds. It is true that some of these farm areas are currently not well utilized but we have plans to slowly extend and well utilize these farms to increase seed production in the country. One of the efforts to put these farms under seed production is to work very closely with private seed companies so that they utilize some of the farm areas to produce their own seeds. Currently we have 8 private seed companies that utilize ASA farms for their seed production. This has worked very well, under such agreements ASA contribution to seed productionin the country has raised up to 3 folds for 2017/18 production season. We have received more request for land in this coming season therefore we expect to have more increase in seed availability as a result of such collaborations.

In each farm, we have farm managers and we are trying our level best to capacitate them quickly at least to the level that they can produce much maintain the quality of seeds so that we can move together with the pace we want, especially under the current situation where we have so many private seed companies.

We usually have technical meetings and today’s meeting is the first one for this financial year whereby we sit down with farm managers from all of the 8 farms, we analyse what we have achieved and associated challenges and plan for the next season. During the meeting, apart from other activities of the technical meeting, we invite one or two expertise to train them on specific topics of choice and help to improve their knowledge and skills in terms of farm management, seed production and other key and important aspect So, we want these farm managers to be in a position that they can just transform themselves in terms of required technical, knowledge and skills .

At least this year, we have exposed them on Productivity, marketing, leadership and , procurement processes and other managerial activities in general. During the meetings we are trying to have very serious planning for example, at the end, every farm manager comes up with a work plan and budget, we discuss to make sure that the budget reflects their activities we want them to do at this particular season.

Q: By the way what are your mandates and what is the state of the farms?

A: Our mandate as ASA is very huge in the country, and the way these eight farms are located, they cover all ecological zone of the country. I want to take this opportunity to say that the farms are very important in terms of food security in the country because they are only eight seeds production farms in the country. So, we just want the community to see the potential of these farms because the population is growing but land size is just the same and these farms actually some of them are within the city, surrounded by people and sometimes it is very difficult to see the potential of these farms. We are requesting the society and management of each district and region to protect these farms because they are very important in terms food production and food security in the country. These farms are the only place where the country is expecting to ensure future food security for the next generation. It is high time now that these areas are highly protected.

Q: What are your priority crops?

A: Normally most of the private seed companies focus on some crop that have high return such as Maize and horticultural crops. But ASA as a government institution we are mandated for all crops which are produced by national agriculture research institute, so we have like legumes, beans, paddy, maze, cassava among many others. So, we produce all these crops and we also produce some crops which are sometime refers to as orphan crops, in small quantities depending on demand but the major crops are paddy, Maize, beans, Sunflower. Q: How is the demand for improved seeds?

A: The demand for improved seeds is highly growing, so we produce what is demanded by the seed consumers and also depend on what is available from research institute as a source of early generation seeds. With the currently increasing demand, I think research need to work hard to generate more of early generation seeds and make them available to ASA. t. So we ASA are at the middle between the farmers and the agriculture research institutions to make sure that the government seeds that goes to the farmers in good condition and at a very reasonable price.

Q; How do you link what you are doing at ASA and the President’s vision of industrial economy?

A: We are highly committed to the ASDP-II program because whatever is touching the food security that means we are completely involved focusing straight as initial player in production of industrial raw materials and again a there will be no agriculture transformation without improved seeds. As you know that most of the raw materials that are going to the industries are coming from the agriculture and when you talk about agriculture you are talking about improved seeds that’s why we were also now involved seriously into oil palm seedling production. We have the mandate to make sure that Sunflower seeds are available everywhere in the country and for this reason, as I said earlier on, we work very closely with TARIto make sure that our only sunflower variety (Record) is purified and distributed to farmer. We have started to do this in potential sunflower production Areas and now we have gid sunflower seeds orders from lake zone (Geita and Chato districts). We are committed to contribute to the production of quality oil crops. So, I can simply say that we are connected straight to the country’s industrial transformation agenda

Q: What should farmers expect from you?

A: Well, the farmers should expect a lot from ASA because we have a very good plans and strategies for improvement. Currently, we are trying to our level best to incorporate every key player who can work very closely with us because we have the capacity but not that much, we need to join hands with private sector. So, we are trying to work hard to make sure that whatever we are producing goes straight to the farmers and increase what farmers needs. We have noticed that the demand of improved seeds is huge and growing and as ASA we can’t manage alone, we are growing and expand our services but we need to join hands with different people, that’s why we work with private seed companies, we work with contract growers so that we can utilize the knowledge and skills that we do not have, and utilize our land effectively and efficiently. We all together targeting to serve Tanzania farmers with improved seeds, we therefore not need to compete but to work together, that’s our focus. We want to make sure that we move, and we grow so that we can improve whatever we have, to the next level. ASA will never compete rather we need to complement each other to attain our targets.

Despite some few challenges, we are committed, and we will workhard to ensure that ASA produce quality seeds for our farmers

Q: You recently held oil palm stakeholders meeting in Morogoro, briefly tell us the objective of that meeting.

A: in fact the meeting aimed at implementing the Prime Minister’s directives issued in July during his working tour of Kigoma region to sensitize production of the crop as a continuation of the Agriculture Sector Development Program phase two (ASDP II).

Oil crop in the ASDP-II was later given required weight after realizing that the use of palm oil and the raw materials accrued from the oil palm is increasing on daily basis.

For example, the research shows that in the 2020, demand of palm oil in the world will approximately be 78 millions tones. This is a huge demand.

As I said earlier, during the Prime Minister’s visit to Kigoma, he formed a task force of experts which constituted experts from ASA, TOSCI, TARI. The task force went to Kigoma and convened a meeting with other stakeholders in the region to discuss on how best the crop could be developed.

The Prime Minister’s inspiration and directives is what have resulted into that oil palm stakeholders’ meeting. ASA in collaboration with Trade Mark East Africa, we invited all oil palm stakeholders such as the government institutions, private sector and the farmers and at the end of the day we came up with a document indicating a common strategy to improve the crop’s production and in the country. This document is currently used tosecure some funds to initiate the process. It is our greatest hope that soon there will be strong initiatives to make sure that new seedlings are available to farmers.

Apart from Kigoma region we see that we can increase production of oil crop in other region such as Morogoro, Ruvuma, Kagera and even Coast regions.

Source IPP Media

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of TradeMark Africa.