Mosquito larva killing products get markets

Dar es Salaam. Tanzania Biotech Production Ltd (TBPL) has secured new markets for its biotech products that kill mosquito larva.

The Kibaha-based TBPL - which manufactures insecticides that kill mosquito larva in the endeavour to eradicate malaria – is owned by the government’s investment arm, the National Development Corporation (NDC).

NDC managing director Damian Gabagambi said at the ongoing 43rd Dar es Salaam International Trade Fair (DITF) yesterday that so far it has received an order to supply biotech products worth $5 million to Eswatini (formerly Swaziland).

“We are also in discussions with a number of countries within the Southern African Development Community (Sadc) so we can supply the products there,” he said.

With the Medical Stores Department (MSD) signing an agreement to supply medicines across 16 Sadc member countries, Prof Gabagambi said they will take the issue of supplying the biotech products seriously during next month’s Sadc summit in Dar es Salaam.

“We believe that the uniqueness of this factory gives us a chance to sell biotech products across all Sadc member countries,” he said.

The TBPL has the capacity of producing six million litres per year but due to a lack of market, it has only produced 570,000 litres since its establishment.

So far, the major buyers of the firm’s products are local government authorities.

During last year’s financial year, the Ministry of Finance and Planning bought a total of 60,000 litres of biotech products worth Sh700 million from the factory.

Various local government authorities have so far bought biotech products worth Sh1.8 billion from the company.