Fertiliser application by small-scale farmers in the post-colonial Tanzania: lessons from the fertiliser subsidy programmes
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Date
2022
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Publisher
The sub Saharan Journal of Social Sciences and Humanities (SJSSH)
Abstract
Tanzania has been subsidising fertilisers for farmers, but its accessibility to small-scale farmers has remained a
challenge. This study assesses the fertiliser subsidy programs implemented in Tanzania since its independence. Precisely, the
study analyses the driving forces for the identified fertiliser subsidy programs assess the programs' strengths and weaknesses
and suggests the way forward based on lessons learnt. A desk review of journal articles, grey literature from conference
papers and national documents on fertiliser subsidy programs in Tanzania was conducted. The fertiliser subsidy programs
identified include the universal fertiliser subsidy program, the fertiliser transport subsidy, and the National Agricultural Input
Voucher Scheme (NAIVS). The implementation of the fertiliser subsidy programs was informed by changes that occurred in
different historical periods, including the period just after independence and before the economic liberalisation, the economic
liberalisation in the 1990s, the drought agenda in 2002/2003, and the food price crisis in 2007/2008. Besides the universal
fertiliser subsidy program, the other two targeted farmers, geographical locations, and crops to enhance staple food
production to ensure national food security. The fertiliser transport and NAIVS subsidy programs had some weaknesses such
as elite capture, malpractices by the agro-dealers, and limited capacity of agro-dealers to timely delivery of fertilisers. The
study concludes that, since economic liberalisation, Tanzania has been subsiding fertilisers to enhance food crop production
for food security purposes with limited impact in transforming the sector. The study recommends that fertiliser subsidisation
should not be limited to improving food security but also focus on enhancing household income gains to help some small-
scale farmers graduate to another level and/or exit from the sector to strengthen agricultural transformation. Also, the
Ministry of Agriculture should devise a comprehensive monitoring system for any fertiliser subsidy program targeting small-
scale farmers to control the elite capture.
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Journal Article
Keywords
Agriculture, Small-scale farmers, Fertiliser subsidy, Post-colonial Tanzania