Water, Irrigation and Electricity State Minister Firenesh Mekuria said the country has build good reputation increasing access to potable water at national level and achieving most of the MDGs goals of supplying safe water as part of its GTP-I efforts.   Speaking at the 10th round water forum, the state minister also said there is still huge gap in the supply which various stakeholders need to narrow joining hands with the government..... Read more »

Posted on : Tuesday , 17th January 2017

More than sixty years elapsed since Ethiopia had become familiar with sugar industry. Though the nation has huge potential for sugar development, the number of sugar factories was so limited and the production remained to be relatively small for long. As a result, the country was obliged to import huge amount of the product to meet the rising local demand.   Fortunately, the situation began changing a couple of decades ago when the.... Read more »

Posted on : Tuesday , 17th January 2017

Tea prices at the Mombasa auction kicked off 2017 on a high note, nearly touching a one-year record during last week's auction.   A market report by the East African Tea Traders Association (EATTA) indicates that a kilogramme of made tea fetched Sh268 on average in Tuesday's trading compared with Sh260 in an earlier sale.   The volume traded last week though dropped by 667,483 tonnes in one of the largest volume declines in recent.... Read more »

Posted on : Tuesday , 17th January 2017

Malahi Chalahani seems to win a race this year. Njire Jibusa and his wife Mwashi Kapimitilo are also confident to win the same race. Likewise, Yohana Samson and his wife Saru Lameck.   All of them are farmers in the ward of Msowero, Morogoro-District. And they all just installed a metal silo. In August last year, after harvest, they stored some 500 kilogrammes of maize in it and closed the silo hermetically. In February, they will most.... Read more »

Posted on : Tuesday , 17th January 2017

Dar es Salaam — Tanzania has signed a $1 billion partnership agreement with a Chinese firm to commercialise cassava farming and processing, raising hopes to growers who have been grappling with the challenge of accessing reliable markets.   Tanzania Agricultural Export Processing Zone Limited and Epoch Agriculture (TAEPZ) from China said they created an out-grower scheme that will ensure sufficient production of cassava for.... Read more »

Posted on : Tuesday , 17th January 2017

Ethiopia is working to become second coffee exporting country.   Ethiopia has set a goal of securing 940 million USD exporting 241,000 tonnes of coffee this year.   In a recent briefing, Ethiopian Coffee and Tea Development and Marketing Authority Director General Sani Redi said modernizing coffee value chain, employing IT assisted export control system and improving Ethiopian Commodity Exchange (ECX) capacity are fundamental tasks.... Read more »

Posted on : Monday , 16th January 2017

 One of the leading coffee shops in East Africa, Java House, is due to open its maiden shop in Kigali today. Java House was initially in Kenya, later expanded to Uganda and have now opened the first Rwanda arm, making a total of 56 branches distributed in three countries. "We are super excited to be in Rwanda, really thrilled," Ken Kuguru, the Group Chief Executive Officer of Java House told The New Times in an interview.... Read more »

Posted on : Monday , 16th January 2017

SPICES grown in Zanzibar, including cloves, are set to increase their competitiveness in the world market following the inauguration of its branding under the name 'Zanzibar Exotic Original.' Isles President Ali Mohamed Shein graced the inauguration of the branded spices, noting that Zanzibar cloves remain the world's best, asking the people to maintain the standard. "We took the best decision not to privatise cloves; it would be under.... Read more »

Posted on : Monday , 16th January 2017

 Smallholder tea farmers and other residents of Nyamagabe District are upbeat following plans by Kitabi Tea Factory to expand production. The move means that residents, mainly from Kitabi, Tare and Uwinkingi sectors, can now expand their plantation as they will be assured of a ready market, officials from the firm have said. According to Jean Mutabazi, the general manager of Kitabi Tea Factory, the firm is working with farmer co-operatives.... Read more »

Posted on : Friday , 13th January 2017

 Rome — A total of 285,600 farmers, particularly women and young people in six regions in southern Mauritania will benefit from a financial agreement signed today between the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) and Mauritania to improve their incomes, nutrition and food security. The agreement for the Inclusive Value Chain Development Project (PRODEFI) was signed in Rome by Michel Mordasini, Vice-President of IFAD.... Read more »

Posted on : Friday , 13th January 2017

 Zanzibar — President Ali Mohamed Shein has officially opened 'Zanzibar's only' milk processing factory named 'Azam Diary' expressing concern over low milk consumption in the islands. "People should be encouraged to drink milk. It is unfortunate that Zanzibar remains of the countries with lowest milk consumption. Let us change this trend," Dr Shein said here at the opening of the Azam Dairy Production Limited (ADPL). The.... Read more »

Posted on : Thursday , 12th January 2017

 Grain and cereal farmers in Rwanda will now be able to access regional market information, particularly prices and markets, thanks to an online platform unveiled by the Eastern Africa Grain Council (EAGC). The Regional Agricultural Trade Intelligence Network (RATIN) will help address the problem of poor access to market information among grain and cereal value chain actors in the country, Seth Kwizera, the EAGC country programme manager,.... Read more »

Posted on : Thursday , 12th January 2017