Posted on April, 23, 2019 at 09:44 am
A record 929,172 agriculture entrepreneurs including smallholder farmers have benefited from Private Agricultural Sector Support Trust guaranteed loans amounting to 712bn/- between 2000 and 2018.
PASS Managing Director, Nicomed Bohay said in Dar es Salaam last Friday that the beneficiaries came from various sub sectors that include livestock, crop production, processing, crop trading, and mechanization.
“It is worth noting that in 2018 alone, PASS benefited a total of 196,873 agribusinesses through loan guarantee as well as business development services in 26 regions spread across the country,” Bohay said.
He pointed out that in the same year, PASS guaranteed 15,564 business plans worth 191bn/- that were presented to various collaborating banks for financing.
“This is a big improvement compared to 623 business plans worth 122.7bn/- that were submitted in 2017. This proves how we work towards supporting the government’s key priority areas of job creation and investments in the country,” Bohay noted.
He asserted that during the past 18 years, PASS experienced execution, expansion, success and challenges that have resulted into learning and knowledge acquisition for the trust to make use of in the future.
“Through the years, our aim has been to become an innovative development focused institution in the provision of financial and business development services in the country’s agricultural sector. PASS continues to be that symbolic organization that has truly empowered smallholder farmers with access to financial services” he added.
Effective 2018, PASS Trust targets to create a cumulative 700,000 jobs directly and indirectly in the agricultural sector by 2022 as per its five year strategic plan. During the period, the trust will support irrigation infrastructures, transportation of agricultural commodities, bee keeping, fish farming as well as inputs trading.
Established in 2000 under the Agricultural Sector Program Support in collaboration with Denmark and Swedish governments with a mission to facilitate access to financial and business development services by the agriculture sector, it registered as trust in 2007 after a successful pilot project.
Currently, PASS Trust is working with 15 banks that include CRDB Bank Plc, NMB Bank Plc, TIB Development Bank, African Banking Corporation Ltd, Akiba Commercial Bank Plc, Bank of Africa Tanzania Ltd, Amana Bank Ltd, Equity Bank Tanzania Ltd and Mkombozi Commercial Bank Plc.
Others are Access Bank Tanzania Ltd, TPB Bank Plc, Vision Fund Micro Finance Bank Ltd, Azania Bank Limited, NBC Bank Ltd and Tanzania Agricultural Development Bank.
Source: IPP Media