New bill proposes sweeping changes in the sugar industry

Dar es Salaam. The government yesterday tabled in Parliament law amendment bill proposing sweeping changes in the sugar industry including broadening stakeholder’s participation in setting sugarcane indicative prices.

The Written Law (Miscellaneous Amendment) Bill, 2020 come weeks after the country plunged into a serious sugar shortage crisis that led to the soaring prices.

Sugar price has gone up from an average of Sh2,6000s up to between Sh3,500 and Sh5,000 per kilogram.

President John Magufuli said on Sunday that the deficit has been contained after a consignment of 26,000 tonnes out of 40,000 tonnes need has started arriving from Uganda through the Mwanza and Dar es Salaam ports.

Attorney General (AG) Prof Adelardus Kilangi told the parliament yesterday that the government sought to amend 14 laws including the Sugar Industry Act Cap 251.

He said the government is proposing amendment of Section 4 of the law to include distributors as among sugar stakeholders to be registered by the Sugar Board of Tanzania (SBT).

“The amendment aims to ensure SBT supervises all sugar stakeholders,” he said.

The proposed amendments also intend to give the Tanzania Official Seed Certification Institute (TOSCI) responsibility to approve sugarcane seeds instead of the SBT director general,” he said.

He said Section 11A of the Act is amended to broaden stakeholder’s participation in setting sugarcane indicative prices and increase farmer’s involvement in calculating sugarcane production costs used at getting indicative prices.

A new section 11B is introduced to set registration conditions of sugar manufacturers that will be used as a condition for provision of sugar manufacturing license,” said the AG. Also, he said the amendment aimed at outlining conditions for registration of a new sugar manufacturing company without interfering the existing manufacturing company.

He said Section 14 has proposed to give sugar manufacturers a responsibility to import sugar for normal uses in order to create transparency in the product’s import process.

He said Section 16A is introduced to give the SBT powers to sign sustainable development contracts with individual sugar manufacturers in order to give assurance of sugar production in the country.

“Section 34B is introduced to establish conditions that only manufacturers should be allowed to do sugar repackaging and prevent sugar production that aimed at changing real name,” he said.

Section 35 has proposed the increase in penalties issued to offenses committed in accordance with the law, hence increase obedient of the law.