Facilitating business linkages is among the TAPBDS key roles under AID-I project with support from USAID, CIMMYT and AGRA. On July 27, 2024, in the Morogoro region, a linkage meeting was organised to bring together Anchor buyers, aggregators, financial institutions, agro dealers, farmer organisations and village based advisors to discuss terms of business and working together in a win-win approach.
One of the key outcomes of the gathering was the successful linkage of 22 farmers organisations with three buyers: Kalla Investment, Lotus, and Benjajacks Company. Furthermore, these farmers’ organisations were connected with two major aggregators, Luvanda Rice Mill and Mambo ya Yesu Mill.
The agreed trade among the participated farmer groups and grain buyers amounted to 4,146 metric tons of maize, paddy and legumes. Also, the meeting witnessed 9 farmer groups and 1 SME filing their loan requirements of 3,975,000,000 Tshs with the participated financial institutions. Facilitating the establishment of business sub-consortia where every stakeholder benefits from the transactions is a sustainable way of building strong food market systems and to unlock essential funding, enabling these organisations to scale their operations and contribute more significantly to the agricultural value chain in Tanzania.
TAPBDS is looking forward to closely following up and tracking the business relationships sawn in the meeting. Efforts will also be directed towards ensuring SMEs and farmers organisations gain access to finance, monitoring the aggregation process, and documenting success stories. Strengthening the ties between VBAs and agricultural input companies will remain a priority, fostering a robust support system.