TAMA BUSINESS FOCUS

Chengwe Coop of Kasungu benefited from AGCOM The World Bank has approved $265 million approximately MK274 billion to scale up agriculture commercialization and to improve food resilience in Malawi. According to a press statement released by Washington on 31 May 2023, Malawi is set to establish new six irrigation schemes, support an additional 560 productive alliances that target more than 112,000 households, and work with smallholder farmers to execute productivity-enhancing investments with support of a $250 million grant from the International Development Association (IDA) and a $15 million grant from the Global Agriculture and Food Security Program that was approved by World Bank’s Board of Executive Directors. The statement says that the new financing is part of phase 3 of the regional Food Systems Resilience Program for Eastern and Southern Africa, or FSRP. The regional program has an overall envelope of $2.75 billion and aims to increase the resilience of food systems and...

AHL Tobacco Sales has it that the 2023 price trends of all tobacco types have consistently been on the increase, compared to that recorded during the same period in 2022. By the closure of business in week 3 of sales on 28th April, a marked increase of 37.6% has been recorded; at an average price of $2.05/kg this year, compared to $1.49/kg registered during the same comparative period last year. Cumulatively, 13.8 million kilograms of all tobacco types have been sold so far this year. The traded volume has raked in $28.4 million this year. During the same period last year, 0.6 million kilograms of tobacco had been sold, from which $ 0.96 million was realized. As the market is still in its infancy, lower bottom leaf styles are currently dominating on all the 3 markets.

It was another international workers’ day also known as labour day on 1 May at Masintha ground in Lilongwe where Tama Farmers Trust was recognised as the best organisation in fighting child labour among the Employers Consultative Association of Malawi (ECAM) members. His Excellency the State president Dr. Lazarus McCarthy Chakwera presented the trophy to the Chief Executive Officer of the Trust Mr. Nixon Lita. Meanwhile, Head of Child labour Unit at the Ministry of Labour Mr. Francis Kwenda has sent his congratulatory message to the Trust for the accolade. He said that the recognition is a sign of the efforts the country is making towards eliminating child labour in agriculture in general and in tobacco growing in particular. He also said that this adds value to cause of Alliance 8.7 role as a Pathfinder Country, which calls for Malawi to go further and faster to achieve Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) Target 8.7. Tama Farmers Trust trains farmer members through cooperatives and g...

Chengwe Cooperative found in the Traditional Authority Kaphaizi in Kasungu District received a capital grant of a brand-new Messy Ferguson 80 hp Tractor from the Agricultural Comercialisation (AGCOM) Project on 18 April, 2023. The handover ceremony was in the presence of T/A Kaphaizi, TAMA Farmers Trust officials, Transform Organisation officials, Farmers Engineering Services (FES) officials, traditional and political leaders, and farmers from the area. The cooperative applied for a grant from AGCOM in 2020 and were successful in the year 2022. AGCOM provided the grouping a 29 million Kwacha grant with which they purchased a tractor from FES at 38 million Kwacha upon adding their contribution as per conditions of the grant. According to the leadership of the Cooperative, they aim at increasing agriculture production as they will use the tractor for most of their farm activities on a larger scale than before. The cooperative is also going into value addition with the help of the o...

1. More volume of tobacco sold and better average prices contributed to higher earnings the country has realised from tobacco sales after 2 weeks in 2023 season, compared to that earned during the same period in 2022. $16.1 million has been generated after 2 weeks of sales this year, compared to $0.5 million earned during similar period last year. 2. A total of 8.1 million kilograms of burley and flue cured tobacco have been sold at an average price of $1.99/kg after 2 weeks of sales this year. During the same comparative period last year, 0.4 million kilograms of tobacco had been sold at an average price of $1.40/kg. 3. Current market trend: Tobacco supplies on the market are on the increase and sales are also increasing towards the recommended trading capacity, especially on Lilongwe Floors. During similar period last year, tobacco deliveries were on the decline with depleted sales. See insights and ads Boost post Like Comment Share

On 14 September 2022, the European Commission presented a proposal for a regulation to prohibit products made using forced labour, including child labour, on the internal market of European Union (EU). The proposed legislation fits into the context of EU efforts to promote decent work worldwide. The proposal covers all products made available within the EU market, meaning both products made in the EU for domestic consumption and for export, and imported goods. The provisions of the proposal would apply to products of any type, including their components, regardless of the sector or industry. Member States would be responsible for the enforcement of the regulation's provisions. Their national authorities would be empowered to withdraw products made using forced labour from the EU market, following an investigation. Customs authorities would identify and stop products made using forced labour at EU borders. In Parliament, the file has been referred to the Committee on the Internal ...

Indonesia: The Presidential Staff Office (KSP) in Indonesia stated that 50% of the tobacco product excise revenue sharing fund will be allocated to support the social protection fund for farmers and workers in the tobacco industry. According to the KSP, the effort is necessary in order to help workers and farmers cope with the impact of the global economic uncertainty on Indonesia’s tobacco sector. The assistance will be offered in the form of fertilizer, machinery and cash. Notably, the Ministry of Finance requires 3% of the tobacco excise revenue to be allocated as a profit-sharing fund managed by the producing regional government. Zimbabwe: The Zimbabwe government has put in place modalities to ensure value addition for tobacco before export. During a speech by Anxious Masuka, Minister of Lands, Agriculture, Water and Rural Resettlement, it was reaffirmed that the government plans to reach its USD 5 billion tobacco industry goal by 2025 through beneficiation of the crop. The Min...