Govt to suspend issuance of sugar import permits
ippmedia.com/en/business/govt-suspend-issuance -sugar-import-permits
August 7, 2021
07
Aug 2021
By Guardian Reporter
Dodoma
Business
The Guardian
Govt to suspend issuance of sugar import permits
THE government has said that it will suspend the issuance of sugar import permits to companies that are local producers of the product starting next year.
Agriculture Minister, Prof Adolf Mkenda said the shortage of the product in the country is not due to the shortage of sugarcane but sugar manufacturers’ failure to increase their factories sugarcane processing capacity.
Prof Mkenda made the remarks in Dodoma on Thursday as he was addressing delegates of the 7th agricultural stakeholders conference held at Asante Estates at Ntyuka area.
“The government will not issue sugar import permits to local manufacturers from next year. By 2022, the country would be capable of producing enough sugar for local consumption because efforts are ongoing to expand existing factories as well as construction of new industries,” said the minister.
Minister Mkenda was concerned that more than 350,000 tonnes of sugarcane produced by out growers at the Kilombero valley in Morogoro Region are destroyed over lack of market.
He said Tanzania imports more than 40,000 tonnes of the sweetener each year, an amount that could be produced locally. He urged the sugar factories to expand their factories to be able to purchase all the sugarcane produced by small scale farmers.
Prof Mkenda warned against illegal importation of sugar in the country’s markets insisting legal measures will be taken against anyone proved to have violated the set regulations.
He added that expansion of the factories would help in creating millions of jobs for young Tanzanians as the demand for sugarcane will increase.
In February this year, the minister said that the government will gave the mandate for sugar importation to the Sugar Board of Tanzania (SBT).
The comment signals change in the government policy, which has been allowing traders to import sugar to offset the shortages.
Recent reports indicate that Tanzania's demand for domestic sugar was 470,000 metric tons, while the country's five sugar processing factories had the capacity of producing 378,000 tonnes in 2019.