Tanzania, Kenya agree to tackle six key issues over maize

Dar es Salaam. Tanzania and Kenya yesterday identified and agreed on six issues in their collective efforts to address shortage of cereals in the latter country.

The six issues include lifting trade barriers on agricultural produce - particularly cereals; supplying a million tonnes of maize to Kenya; setting indicative prices for produce and regularly convening meetings of regulatory bodies from the two countries.

The other issues are: signing a contract to supply a million tonnes of the cereal to Kenya, and endorsing a distributor of milled products from Tanzania to the Kenyan market.

The agreement was reached during a meeting involving Tanzania’s Agriculture deputy minister Hussein Bashe, Kenyan Agriculture principal secretary Hamadi Boga, Kenyan High Commissioner to Tanzania, Dan Kazungu and several senior government officials from both sides.

The meeting in Dar aimed at establishing how Kenya should address the challenge. Kenya has been severely hit by cereals shortage, thus causing the price of maize flour to jump to Ksh135 (Sh2,900) for a 2-kilo package, up from Ksh85 in January .

Elaborating, Mr Bashe said the two sides have, in principle, agreed to lift trade barriers on agricultural products, specifically cereals.

“The Tanzania Bureau of Standards (TBS), the Tanzania Revenue Authority (TRA) and the Tanzania Atomic Energy Commission (TAEC) should be represented at the National Food Reserve Agency (NFRA) warehouses, tasked with ensuring that the consignments leave Tanzania without involving unmitigated bureaucracy - but after all the necessary procedures have been fulfilled,” he said.

The newly-appointed deputy minister, who doubles as Nzega Urban MP (CCM), said it was agreed during the meeting that NFRA and the Cereals and Other Produce Board of Tanzania (CPB) will supply the maize.

He also said that the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA), the Kenya Bureau of Standards (KBS), the Kenya Foods Security (KFS), TRA, TBS, the National Food Security (NFS), NFRA and the East African Grain Council (EAGC) will meet next week to deliberate on other issues under CPB coordination.

“During the meeting, Kenya will provide its demand of quality maize flour and a modality for traders using CPB facilities for processing, cleaning and packaging of maize,” he said.

“Maize and its products crossing the border will now be branded after TBS and KBS set the framework.”

Mr Bashe said the two sides have agreed on indicative prices of the commodity but declined to reveal it to avoid what he described as a possible clash of interests in the market.

According to him, a distributor from the Kenyan side will be picked to take up the role of processing maize coming from Tanzania for the market.

Touching on the contract for the supply of a million tonnes of maize, Bashe said its singing has been scheduled to take place next week.

“I direct officials in the of Agriculture ministry to list Tanzanian maize flour brands, provide free registration to millers - and their products will be shipped to Kenya after approval by KBS and TBS,” he said.

Addressing the meeting, Mr Boga said Kenya had a deficit of 600,000 tonnes of maizefor July, August and September.

According to him, the country requires 18 million bags per year, equivalent to about 1.5 million to 1.7 million tonnes.

Mr Kazungu said the private sector should be tasked to take a leading role in undertaking this business.

“As the minister said, it is shameful to see vehicles stranded for a week at Holili, Sirari or Namanga border posts, while hunger has stricken people in Kajiado County,” he said, calling for speedy custome clearing procedures.

Last week, vehicles importing maize to Kenya were reported to have stranded for a week at the Taveta one-stop-border point, with KRA officials blamed for the delay.