Posted on September, 20, 2019 at 11:31 am
A U$14 million (over 32.2bn/-) fertilizer manufacturing factory will be built in the outskirts of Dar es Salaam soon as negotiations between the government and Morocco based OCP Africa are at advanced stage.
OCP Tanzania Country Manager, Dr Mshindo Msola told Bagamoyo district officials and representatives of farmers that will manufacture Nitrogen Sulfur and Phosphorus and NSP Zinc fertilizers with high nutrient content suitable for paddy rice production in the seaside district.
“Negotiations with Tanzania Fertilizer Company and Ministry of Agriculture are at advanced stage and we will soon make an official announcement as to where the factory will be located,” Dr Msola said while noting that the product to be made will conform to soil types and crop needs.
The plant which will have capacity of over 40,000 metric tons per annum will create thousands of jobs and save the country billions of shillings currently being spent to import artificial fertilizers which local farmers need.
Currently OCP Africa produces different fertilizer that includes UREA and DAP which are used by cereal farmers and also those engaged in cotton production, vegetable and fruit production, among other commodities.
“We have decided to invest in this project after discovering that currently Tanzania fertilizer consumption is much higher at about 600,000 tons most of which is imported,” the OCP Africa Country Manager added.
On her part, Tanzania Agricultural Research Institute’s Mlingano Centre researcher, Dr Catherine Senkoro said TARI will work in partnership with OCP Africa to ensure farmers obtain fertilizer that is suitable for their soil type and crop needs.
Dr Senkoro expressed appreciation to farmers at Bagamoyo Irrigation Development Project for allowing TARI researchers take soil from their farms for analysis and testing that in turn has helped to provide them with suitable fertilizers.
“TARI Mlingano in Tanga region will continue to conduct soil research as well as testing from different region across the country to help farmers choose appropriate crops for cultivation while also applying appropriate fertilizer,” she noted. With the OCP African factory, the TARI
researcher said it will; be much easier to work with farmers because unlike with imported fertilizers, locally manufactured ones will have higher quality as the manufacturer will products as per market demand.
Source: IPP Media