THE Minister for Agriculture, Japhet Hasunga, has tipped farmers and business community in Lindi Region to use government special Identity Cards, which easily identify them to process loans being offered by financial institutions.
The Minister reached the decision after meeting cashew nuts stakeholders in Lindi during their annual general meeting, where on visiting NBC bank pavilion at the region’s agricultural show he said: “These IDs have a special chip that carries all important information of a farmer, a move that will help financial institutions to simplify processes for them and issue loans.”
In 2018, President John Magufuli introduced special Identification cards (ID) to petty traders with less than 4 m/- capital countywide that would make it easy for Tanzania Revenue Authority (TRA) to identify them.
However, Mr Hasunga, while handing over some of the IDs to 15 farmers, who also attended the stakeholders meeting, further said: “Also, the government is currently reassessing the agricultural market policy including the issue of contract farming so that our farmers can know the price(s) of agricultural products on time.”
The farmers and traders confided to the Minister that loans access was one of their major obstacles, that once addressed would empower them to have enough funds, particularly to transport their cashew nut products to the market on time.
In discussion the farmers and different stakeholders of the crop, welcomed NBC bank’s new product - ‘NBC Shambani’ that it would address their challenges and ensure them loans on the right time.
One of the farmers, Salum Muhila, from Liwale District in Lindi Region said: “Fellow farmers and the business community don’t easily access loans from NBC, and despite having access to various financial services from different financial institutions, there have been unprecedented delays in acquiring loans, something that has been making farmers to use their money for unintended purposes, therefore it is our expectation that with the coming of ‘NBC Shambani, we believe this will be one of the solutions.
Earlier, while explaining to the clients on how the service operates, NBC Head of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs), Raymond Urassa, said his bank targets all stakeholders including distributers of agricultural products, farmers as well as those supplying agricultural inputs, among others.
“Bearing in mind that ‘NBC Shambani’ come specifically for agriculture stakeholders, it means that its efficiency can be assessed by looking how it suggests solutions for various challenges including timely issuance of loans to farmers so that the money is used for intended purpose.
He added that the new service provides an opportunity to farmers, who are working together in groups like Agricultural Marketing Co-operative Societies (AMCOS) to have group accounts as well as individual accounts to farmers.
“NBC account to groups of farmers and helps them to save their money in the accounts without being charged operational costs, receiving details of their accounts without any charges and when transferring money for paying farmers, their accounts are not charged any cost,” he added.
