Regional Markets

Regional Markets for Local Development
At the markets in Dar es Salaam, a wide variety of products (maize and rice) are available
to the consumer sold in bulk or by the kilos. Prices can vary by point of sale (supermarket,
small kiosk, wholesale market, etc.), point of origin, variety of the products,
grade (for those traders who grade the rice), quality of the products (percentage of broken
rice and colour for maize) and the age of the rice. Older rice sells for a lower price
than the rice of the current season. At the retail level, the top price for Chimala rice in
Dar es Salaam was TZS 1,200 per kilogram. Meanwhile broken rice from Ifakara was
sold for around TZS 600 per kilogram.
The RUDI marketing department collects wholesale prices for rice. A brief comparison
between the wholesale price of rice per bag in Dar es Salaam and the price in Chimala,
Iringa and Ifakara/Kilombero demonstrates that in Iringa, Chimala and Kilombero rice
is consistently TZS 5,000–20,000 cheaper than wholesale prices in Dar es Salaam (for
100 kg bags). Prices increase as one gets farther away from the production areas.
While the statistics show relatively little official export of rice and maize from
Tanzania, it does take place. For instance, in times of famine in neighbouring Kenya
and Malawi, it is very likely that substantial quantities of maize are flowing across the
borders to those two countries, as well as to Burundi, but these statistics are not officially
recorded. Some rice is exported to Uganda from the lake zone, particularly from
Kagera, and some is exported to the Gulf States via Pemba/Zanzibar. Many traders
from Zanzibar/Pemba have agents in the rice growing regions, who buy substantial
amounts of rice during harvest time. In total, rice and maize often change hands five
to six times between the farmer who grows the maize and paddy and retailer who
eventually sells it.
Challenges
Weather is a critical variable in agricultural production as it can have major impacts on
yields and supply. Hence actions that reduce the unpredictable impact of weather patterns
(such as irrigation) are important for securing long-term growth. Competition
from other crops is another key challenge. For most farmers, maize and rice are first
and foremost food. Because of their durability in storage, they can also be used as very
good cash crops; however, farmers are often quick to switch to a more profitable cash
crop if the opportunity arise. For example, growing sugar cane can be as much as 3 to 4
times more profitable than rice. The implications for RUDI are to not invest in trying
to promote rice in areas where there is a functioning sugar mill or other major investments
to promote the marketing of more remunerative crops.
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