Dodoma Regional Commissioner (RC), Rosemary Senyamule, has called upon the youth to capitalize on opportunities in agri-business to bolster their earnings and contribute to the country's economic growth through the agricultural sector.
RC Senyamule made this appeal during the recently concluded 2023 Tanzania Agriculture Stakeholders Learning Event (TASLE), organized by the Agricultural Markets Development Trust (AMDT) in collaboration with several partner institutions. AMDT is a Tanzanian-owned trust established to facilitate better coordination among value chain development initiatives, enhance understanding of agricultural market systems, improve productivity and market access for micro, small, and medium enterprises, and effectively contribute to poverty reduction in Tanzania.
Held in Dodoma under the theme, 'Connect, Sustain, and Scale Innovation in Agriculture Market Systems,' TASLE 2023 brought together numerous stakeholders in the agricultural sector to explore avenues for adding value to production and boosting the nation's economy. The event served as a platform for experts, policymakers, researchers, farmers, and industry leaders to converge and work collaboratively toward a sustainable and prosperous future for agriculture in Tanzania.
Taking place in the dynamic capital city of Dodoma, TASLE attracted participants from across Tanzania and international experts, providing them with a space to learn, collaborate, and share insights on innovative practices, policies, and technologies in the agricultural sector. Throughout the event, attendees engaged in interactive workshops, training sessions, and panel discussions, fostering valuable opportunities for stakeholders to exchange knowledge and forge lasting partnerships. One notable aspect of TASLE 2023 was its emphasis on empowering youth participation in agriculture.
The closing ceremony of the event saw RC Senyamule expressing gratitude to AMDT for convening stakeholders from the sector to collectively address challenges and propose ways forward. She underscored the importance of specific attention, training programs, and educational initiatives to equip young Tanzanians with the necessary skills and knowledge to thrive in the evolving agricultural landscape.
RC Senyamule highlighted that due to improved government policies, agriculture is now considered a potential pathway for citizens to achieve prosperity, dispelling the previous misconception that it was solely for unemployed individuals. She expressed her belief that the deliberations of the three-day event would lead to enhanced coordination among those engaged in agriculture.
Moreover, the RC stressed the government's desire to see more young people involved in agri-business, emphasizing that it is a lucrative sector where individuals can improve their income, contribute to the country's GDP, and address unemployment challenges by becoming self-employed.
During the event, Charles Ogutu, Executive Director of AMDT, explained that TASLE brought together stakeholders from various development sectors, with the primary goal of learning and sharing experiences. He noted that the event also included participants from financial institutions responsible for providing agricultural loans and equipment procurement loans to enhance value addition and production.
"In our deliberations, stakeholders have unanimously agreed to develop joint strategies for self-supervision, and they have committed to incorporating what they have learned into their respective offices' strategic plans immediately upon returning," Ogutu stated. Dr. Mary Shetto, a member of the Board of Trustees at AMDT, revealed that over the past year, the organization had reached out to more than 100,000 farmers across different regions.
She emphasized the organization's current focus on sunflower farming as a means to support the government's efforts to reduce the budget for importing edible oil. "The main objective of investing in sunflowers is to complement the government's endeavors to increase production and reduce imports of edible oil products from abroad," Dr. Shetto explained.