Transport
The Swedish aid organisation SIDA is to assist ‘with the improvement of Air Tanzania’s ground handling equipment at Dar es Salaam and Kilimanjaro airports and the Irish airline Aer Lingus is to help with a manpower development plan. Air Tanzania’s troubles have included the grounding of aircraft through lack of spares. It is reported that several Western airlines are considering Suspending their services to Tanzania because the Bank of Tanzania has released no currency in payment of tickets for eight months.
Industry and Trade
The Tanga-based Tanzania Fertiliser ‘Company has started the production of ammonium hydroxide, which is used in paint production and wood treatment. *
A trade agreement with Mozambique provides for Tanzania to exchange aluminium sheets, cocoa beans and hoes for welding electrodes, tyres, tubes and sewing machines.
A second gold mine (buckreef) developed at a cost of £8 million and employing 300 people has started production and is expected to have an output of 2 kilos a day.
A power alcohol plant is planned to be in production at Moshi by 1985 using by-products as raw materials. The alcohol will be made from molasses, much of which at present goes to waste, and will be mixed with petrol. The project will be financed by a French Government loan.
The hydroelectric power project at Mtera, 100 miles north of Iringa, is to be financed by a consortium of five European countries, Sweden, Norway, the German Federal Republic, France and Italy, together with the World Bank and the Kuwait Development Fund.
Agriculture
The International Development Association (the World Bank affiliate for concessionary lending) has approved a credit of $12 million for the coffee, cotton and sisal authorities, technical assistance for the Ministry of Agriculture and staff for an advisory group to make recommendations to the Tanzanian Government on an economic recovery programme (see Bulletin No.13, page 2).
The Dairy Farm Company of Tanzania (DAFCO) aided by the World Bank is purchasing 1,000 dairy heifers and 10 bulls from Zimbabwe. The plan to establish 17 dairy farms each with 350 cows and a breeding centre and to provide 50 ujamaa villages with herds of 20 cows each was launched in 1974 and should have been completed by 1980, but has been extended to 1984.
A proposal for a rice irrigation project at Mkomazi, near Korogwe, first investigated in 1950, has been abandoned after a West German report found that it would not be profitable.
Education
The Ministry of National Education is to investigate the effects that the adult literacy campaigns have had on the behaviour, attitudes and thinking of new literates.
Graham Mytton
* The early history of the Tanzania Fertiliser Company is described in an article entitled ‘Tanzania’s Fertiliser Factory’, by Andrew Coulson in the Journal of Modern African Studies, 1977, Vol.XV No.1.