Smallholder farmers in the country have been challenged to open and exploit "FahariLilimo" Accounts with CRDB Bank Plc and utilize opportunities that come with it such as borrowing money to improve their farms.
Vice President Samia Suluhu Hassan said here over the weekend while officiating this year’s ‘Nane Nane’ agriculture exhibitions being held at national level in Bariadi District of Simiyu Region that ‘FahariKilimo’ is tailor made to meet needs of farmers.
“I am happy to learn that over 146,000 farmers in the country have opened this account and havde already been given loans worth over 650bn/-. I urge more farmers to open this account and get access to such benefits,” VP Suluhu Hassan said when she visited CRDB’s pavilion and was briefed about the account. She further noted that the bank also trains and sensitizes smallholder farmers on how best to manage their finances and benefit from the agriculture value chain prevalent in the country.
“Women who constitute a 65 percent of the workforce in the agriculture sector also need to benefit from this account,” Suluhu Hassan noted while requesting financial institutions to streamline and relax stringent conditions for borrowers.
She commended CRDB’s management for being in the frontline of lowering interest rates being charged on loans taken by ‘Malkia’ Account businesswomen holders from 24 to 14 percent saying such a big relief encourages women to borrow more.
The VP said the government is speeding up issuance of national identification cards by National Identification Authority so that farmers can easily access loans in addition to special identities for the group which falls in the informal sector category.
“But the government through Ministries of Agriculture and Lands has devised a strategy to undertake countrywide wide land surveying and official documentation to add value to farms,” she stated.
Briefing the VP, CRDB’s Chief Finance Officer, Fredrick Nshekanabo said ‘FahariKilimo’ Account is the bank’s tailor made for farmers so that their financial needs are addressed adequately. “This account attracts to opening balance and has no maintenance fees because we want to encourage farmers’ use formal banking in their business transactions,” Nshekanabo said.
He further noted that the bank which has heavily invested in the agriculture sector targets to recruit more farmers hence the decision to feature flamboyantly at this year’s show and is also the main sponsor with 60m/- pay-check.
“Once a farmer opens the account we incorporate them into our plan which includes training on better farming practices and how to grow their business through use of the bank’s various products and services,” he added while unveiling that CRDB has 40 percent market share of agro-loans disbursed so far
Of the 650bn/- that the bank has given out so far, 97.3bn/- went to value chain in cotton farming, 167.3bn/- to sugar producers, 36.6bn/- to coffee production and 60bn/- to tea farming.
