cases from tanzania - Sustainet

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Agricultural policy in Kenya
and tanzania
his part describes the impact of policy reforms of the 1980s
tand
1990s in Kenya and Tanzania on small-scale farmers, rural
poverty and rural economic development. It also describes various
problems facing agriculture in the two countries, shows how sustainable agriculture can
help overcome these problems, and suggests policy changes needed to support a shift to
sustainable agriculture.
policy reforms
In both Kenya and Tanzania the pre-reform period was characterized by government control,
production and marketing for most commodities. In addition to cooperatives, state-run
farmer organizations were also set up to support and market major commodities. In Kenya
these included (among others) the Kenya Tea Development Authority, Kenya Cooperative
Creameries, and the National Cereals and Produce Board. In Tanzania, which was considered
as the socialist model for Africa, the principle of government control applied even more
strongly. However, most cooperatives and state-owned boards failed to ensure stable prices
and food security; instead, product prices fell in surplus areas and rose in deficit areas.
Inspired by the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund, and along with many
countries in sub-Saharan Africa, Kenya and Tanzania undertook economic reforms during
the late 1980s and the 1990s. Agriculture-relevant reforms included the deregulation of
exchange controls, currency devaluation, market and trade liberalization, the reduction of
fiscal deficits, the privatization of state marketing boards, and downsizing and streamlining
of public institutions. State intervention in agriculture has declined, and production is
increasingly based on market principles.
Policy reforms in Tanzania in the 1980s were directed to deal with a lingering economic
crisis. They began with removing the government monopoly in the marketing of agricultural
commodities, lifting associated price controls on imports and pricing, and distribution of
farm inputs. Except for the trading operations of the Strategic Grain Reserve, trade in food
crops is now entirely private. All types of public support to the agricultural sector have been
eliminated.
Tanzania adopted a National Poverty Eradication Strategy in 1997. The objective of food
policy is to maintain food self-sufficiency. This reflects the government’s aims of improving
social well-being and eliminating abject poverty. The Tanzanian Poverty Reduction Strategy
Paper (2000) identified agriculture and small and medium size enterprises as the primary
means of cutting poverty.
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