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Country profile - Tanzania
From the spice groves and palm-fringed beaches of Zanzibar to the great plains of the
Serengeti and the snow-capped peak of Kilimanjaro, Tanzania can not only claim the
greatest variation in altitude on the continent, but also some of its most exotic locations.
But despite the richness of culture, landscape and wildlife, Tanzania remains one of the
poorest countries in sub-Saharan Africa, and faces a serious environmental crisis. With
the best rangelands increasingly cultivated to feed a population that has tripled in the last
forty years, Tanzania's vast herds of zebu cattle are being forced onto marginal land that
is over-grazed to the point of becoming desert. Traditional cattle owners are unwilling to
reduce their herd sizes, which for them are the equivalent of life-savings, pension and
children's inheritance, and their way of life is threatened by imported concepts of land
ownership, as well as pressure from their government to give up their nomadic existence
and 'settle down'.
Agro-economy
When Tanzania gained independence in 1961, agriculture was at the centre of the
country's development plans, on the basis of the 'Ujamaa' communal land ownership
system. However, support for independence movements in other countries stretched
Tanzania's financial reserves, and worse was to come. In the late 1970s global
commodity prices began falling, and over the last 30 years approximately 85% of the real
value of Tanzanian agricultural exports per capita has been lost, from an average US$64
in 1966-9 to $9 in 1992-6. Despite this, agriculture continues to contribute around 80% of
export earnings, and most industry in the country is also linked to the agricultural sector,
whether producing farm inputs such as fertilizer and farm tools, or processing agricultural
products: cigarettes, canned meats, beer and pyrethrum.
Crop patterns
Most Tanzanian farmers are smallholders; few families cultivate more than 2 hectares,
and even those who have access to more land struggle to benefit from it, lacking all but
the most basic hand held tools. Only around 20% of farmers make use of animal traction
for ploughing. In terms of crops, maize dominates much of the country, particularly the
highlands in north and south. The lush tropical coastal belt, always warm and humid, is
dominated by cassava, with rice also grown in an area spreading westwards from Dar es
Salaam. Drought resistant millet and sorghum are grown in the central plateau where
temperature and rainfall are highly variable, although aside from these arid plains, rainfall
is fairly well spread throughout the year, peaking between March and May, with another,
shorter rainy season between November and early January.
Sisal estate near Tanga
Having such a diversity of climatic and geographical zones, it is no surprise that
Tanzania's farmers grow a huge variety of fruit, vegetable and spice crops. Zanzibar, once
a leading source of spices for the global market, continues to produce large amounts of
cloves. Coffee, grown both on estates and by smallholders, is a major export crop,
earning a mighty 17% of the country's foreign exchange, and cotton, cashew nuts and
tobacco are also grown for export by smallholders. In addition to these export crops,
Tanzania is impressively self-sufficient in food production, with over 90% of food
consumed being 'home grown'. Yet ironically, the producers continue to suffer chronic
poverty; less than 30% of people in rural areas have access to safe water, and
malnutrition is reported to have doubled in the last 25 years.
Although Tanzania's rangeland resources would seem a major asset, in reality 60% of this
area is infested with tsetse fly and, as a result, animals are concentrated in the arid and
semi-arid centre and north of the country. An erosion in land quality has been the
inevitable result of over-stocking, and grazing is not the only resource to suffer such a
fate. Diminishing government support for animal health provision has left veterinary
services badly needing succour. While pastoralist communities tend to attract most
attention, in fact most farmers in tsetse-free areas raise both crops and livestock. Many
keep cattle for milk, but production has not kept pace with population growth, and on
average Tanzanians only drink half the quantity of milk drunk by their Kenyan
neighbours.
Private sector solution?
Last year the government began formulating an Agricultural Sector Development
Strategy, and identified the following constraints to the sector: inappropriate technology,
inadequate research and extension services, over-dependence on rainfall, low utilisation
of improved technologies, poor infrastructure, especially roads and market networks, lack
of financial services in rural areas, limited processing capacity and technology, low and
declining prices of most export commodities combined with barriers to trade in
developed countries, and HIV/AIDS. Government spokespeople are happy to advocate
the need for a revolution in agriculture and related rural activities, and are pushing for
private sector supply of inputs, credit, information and marketing services, with a
'facilitative tax regime' the main draw. However, the private sector currently lacks the
experience and resources to meet the challenge, and the ultimately any revolution in
Tanzania is going to depend on the willingness or otherwise of the international donor
community.
Statistical information
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Country: Tanzania
Capital: Dodoma
Area: 945,087 sq km
Population: 37,187,939 (July 2002 est.)
Ethnic groups: Bantu African 95%, other African 4%, Asian, European, Arab
1%
Languages: Kiswahili, English, Arabic (in Zanzibar)
Population growth: 2.6% (2002 est.)
Urbanisation: 25%
GDP: $22.1billion
GDP per capita: $610 (purchasing power parity)(2001est.)
Population below poverty line: 51% (1991 est)
GDP composition by sector: agriculture 48%; industry 35%; services 17%
(2000 est)
Literacy (people aged 15 and over who can read and write): total 67.8%; male
79.4%; female 56.8% (1990 est)
Land use: permanent pastures 40%; forests and woodland 40%; arable land 6%;
permanent crops; other 13%
Irrigated land: 1,550 sq km
Agricultural products: coffee, sisal, tea, cotton, pyrethrum (insecticide made
from chrysanthemums), cashew nuts, tobacco, cloves, maize, wheat, cassava,
bananas, fruits, vegetables, cattle, sheep, goats
Major industries: primarily agricultural processing (sugar, beer, cigarettes, sisal
twine), diamond and gold mining, oil refining, shoes, cement, textiles, wood
products, fertilizer, salt
Natural resources: hydropower, tin, phosphates, iron ore, coal, diamonds,
gemstones, gold, natural gas, nickel
Export commodities: gold, coffee, cashew nuts, manufactures, cotton, tobacco,
tea, sisal
Major Export Partners: UK 22%, India 14.8%, Germany 9.9%, Netherlands
6.9%