By Zephania Ubwani, The Citizen Bureau Chief
Arusha. In a bid to improve agricultural productivity, the ministry of Agriculture, Food Security and Cooperatives has approved new varieties of seeds that are resistant to drought and diseases. The 26 seed varieties will start to be planted in the next farming season. They also take shorter times to mature and produce yields two or three times per acre.

“The new seeds will mark another major leap forward for our agriculture because they can cope with insufficient rains and resist a number of crop diseases,” said permanent secretary Mohamed Muya here on Saturday.

Farmers could start benefiting from the seeds in the 2012/2013 season. “We can now confidently say from now henceforth Tanzania is to record bumper harvests and therefore food security in the country will always be assured,” he said.

According to him, the new seeds have gone through all verification processes. These include testing by experts during many years of research and being certified by the National Seeds Committee of the ministry.

The PS explained that the National Variety Release Committee had initially advised the ministry on the new seed varieties and it was the main body that was behind the approval of the seeds.

The new seeds varieties include nine new seed varieties for maize, five types of arabica coffee seeds and four tea seed varieties.

There are four seeds for cassava and one each for barley, millet and beans, Mr Muya told reporters at the end of a meeting of crop experts here.

According to him, the Tea Research Institute of Tanzania, the Tanzania Coffee Research Institute, the Agricultural Research Institute and the Naliende Agriculture Research Institute are among the institutions that improved the seed varieties. Private firms that participated in the research programme include Suba Agro-Training and Engineering, Pioneer Overseas Corporation, Monsato Tanzania Limited, Meru Agro-Tours and Consultants and Tanzania Breweries Limited

Distribution throughout the country would be undertaken by the Agricultural Seed Agency, a body under the ministry.
Another player in the seed industry is the Tanzania Official Seed Certification Institute based near Arusha.

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