Trust to
enhance investment launched
By Heckton Chuwa, Moshi
The government has established a financial institution, the Unit Trust of
Tanzania (UTT) aiming to improve investment conditions for local citizens.
Ambassador Fadhili Mmbaga, one of the trustees of the UTT, said this when
enlightening residents of Kilimanjaro about the trust at a meeting in Moshi
Municipal.
The financial institution goes hand on hand with the government’s commitment to
facilitate wider ownership of privatized enterprises. It is hoped that it will
lead to an increased participation in capital markets by Tanzanians.
Presenting a paper during the meeting, one of the UTT officials, Dr. Hamisi
Kibola said the UTT is a financial sector institution that will develop
financial products.
“These may range from the establishment of collective investment schemes to the
formulation of various financial support products. To start with, attention has
been focused on the establishment of a collective investment scheme to be known
as Umoja Fund,” he said.
Dr. Kibola said that one of the key ways of achieving wider ownership is through
the promotion and management of collective investment schemes.
The scheme works on the principal of pulling resources, placing those resources
in the hands of professional management and permitting investors to share the
benefits arising out of investment of the pooled funds, added Kibola.
Countries where the scheme has been operational include South Africa, Zimbabwe,
Zambia, Ghana, Mauritius and most recently Kenya. It has been conducted
successfully in all countries.
Citing the advantages of the collective investment scheme, Kibola mentioned
aggregating small savings into larger pooled funds and professional management
of the pooled funds.
Also risk diversification through diversified portfolios, lower transaction
costs and access to investments of higher minimum thresholds are advantages that
come with the scheme, according to Kibola.
Kibola said that despite efforts to encourage investments in shares, certain
structural impediments make it difficult for a majority of Tanzanians to access
the stock exchange.
“The UTT will introduce an infrastructure which will be more conducive to
overall participation of Tanzanians. The approach is to bring the market closer
to the people so that they will be able to transact business from within their
own locality instead of the current practise which forces them to seek the
services direct at the Dar es Salaam Stock Exchange,” he said.
As regards the efficiency of the UTT, Kibola assured the participants that the
institution is strong and supported by the government through the Minister of
Finance.
He said the UTT is currently holding in trust 23,594,277 shares of the Tanzania
Breweries Ltd. and 3,000,000 of the Tanzania Cigarette Company.
New policy
framed for Agricultural products market
By Zainab Yusuph, Dodoma
The government is drafting an Agricultural Products Market Policy
which will aim at protecting a farmer and a businessman dealing in agricultural
products in the local and international markets. The policy is slated for use in
the near future after completing the necessary formalities.
This was revealed by the Deputy Minister for Cooperatives and Marketing,
Hezekiah Chibulunje when opening Tanzania Farmers Groups Network (MVIWATA)
General Council at the Christian Council of Tanzania (CCT) hall in Dodoma
Municipality, recently.
The policy, he said, will provide legal guidelines, regulations and procedures
of purchasing and selling agricultural products in the country and outside the
country, helping the farmers make profits from sales of their agricultural
products.
The policy statement will incorporate national institutions such as the Tanzania
Farmers Groups Network, regarding development of farmers' products markets.
MVIWATA, one of the national institutions, will oversee the implementation as
well.
The government, the Deputy Minister said, value people’s efforts, as individuals
or in groups, whose aim was to bring development for themselves in the areas
they come from.
It is in this perspective that the government was trying to support farmers’
efforts in forming their development groups, such as MVIWATA, for enhancing
development as they are close to farmers, Chibulunje observed.
He urged the Tanzania Farmers Groups Network to build a strong network which
will incorporate farmers nationwide and enable them find solutions to problems
that confront them.
The General Council, held Monday this week, brought together 50 representatives
from all Dodoma Region’s districts of Mpwapwa, Kondoa, Kongwa, Dodoma Rural and
Dodoma Urban.
Trading in
NICO shares increases
By Angela Mazula
About 14,000 Tanzanians have bought shares in the National Investment Company
(NICO), the NICO Chairman has revealed.
Speaking in Dar es Salaam during the weekend, Felix Mosha, Chairman Board of
Directors said Tanzanians have shown their interest to have control of country’s
economy.
If compared against the shares bought between last November and January, the
numbers have increased this year.
“Our target was to get the largest number possible of Tanzanians which would
enable the company to have majority shares in the companies expected to be
privatised,” he added.
Mosha said NICO wants to buy the National Microfinance Bank (NMB), National
Shipping Agencies, NASACO, National Insurance Cooperation (NIC), Tanzania
Harbours Authority (THA), Tanzania National Electric Supply Company (TANESCO)
and the Tanzania Revenue Authority (TRA) where they were non-profit making
company.
“If Tanzanians want to have development they should buy NICO shares to take full
control of their country’s economy and shake off their negative attitude of
thinking that by buying NICO shares they are wasting their hard earned money,”
he said.
NICO was registered as a liability company under the companies’ ordinance and it
is the first company to sell its shares to the people with the approval of the
capital market Authority of Tanzanians, said Mosha.
G8 countries
lack incentives to invest
By Kizitto Joseph
Increased corruption, power expenses, lack of modern infrastructure and high
communications expenses are said to be the reasons for the failure of highly
developed countries (G8 countries) to invest in developing nations.
The G8 representative Emmy Simmons said in Dar es Salaam this week that such
factors have a negative impact on investment.
He said that the difference in telephone expenses from five dollars for eight
hours on line in America to five dollars for 12 to 20 minutes in Tanzania is
telling.
He said the difference in power expenses between the two countries is enormous
and that lack of modern roads and electrically driven trains has made the
investors hesitate to take decision to invest.
Device to
simplify prepaid calls
By Angela Mazula
PANACOM Tanzania Limited and the Tanzania Telecommunication Limited (TTCL) have
launched a device to simplify the tedious procedure now involved in using TTCL
prepaid service, said Panacom Limited Managing Director, Mohamed Shamji.
Speaking with the Journalist in Dar es Salaam, Shamji said a device, developed
locally, called prepaid smart auto dialler adaptor, is all poised to simplify
the system of using TTCL prepaid service.
The customers will no longer have to dial so many numbers before getting
connected to a particular line. The device is claimed to have a wide range of
advantages including improving the speed of the process of making calls and to
regulate the calls made.
The small size of the gadget makes it easier for one to move with it from one
place to another and the system has been approved by Tanzania Communications
Regulatory Authority (TRCA). Each adaptor comes along with a manual and wire
that is connected to the phone where it would be used.
The MD said that Tanzania is the first country in Africa to come up with such a
solution and that countries like Kenya, Uganda , Malawi, Mozambique, Zambia and
South Africa have consulted Panacom regarding the device so that they could also
simplify the use of prepaid service in their countries.
EU to support
Africa in sugar trade
By Timothy Kitundu
The European Commission (EC) has expressed its willingness to support Africa,
Caribbean and Pacific (ACP)countries including Tanzania that export sugar to the
EU.
The statement follows a sugar reform process started by the EU accompanying the
adjustment process in ACP countries signatories to the Sugar Protocol.
According to a report released by the Commission, several ACP economies were
dependent in sugar exports to the EU and may experience, following the EU sugar
reform, certain disruption in their sugar sector with consequence on their
socio-economic development.
According to the report, the Commission proposes a partnership to support them
in meeting this challenge, by means of a set of trade and development measures.
“We are well aware of the challenges imposed by the EU sugar reform on our ACP
partners, and we are committed to using development and trade policies to work
with them to help them adapt. This will be done on the basis of the actual needs
of the countries concerned,” Louis Michel,Commissioner of Dvelopment and
Humanitarian Aid was quoted by the report.
The Sugar Protocol according to the report is a notable feature of the EU sugar
import regime and plays a significant role for the socio-economic situation of
its 18 ACP signatory countries, mainly from Southern Africa, the Caribbean and
the Pacific.
The report says, that the access to the EU market represents around 70 per cent
of the revenue of their sugar sectors. This largely explains the need for
adaptation of several of these countries in the face of changes on EU market.
Responding amongst others to the request of the ACP the Commission’s ‘action
plan’ puts forward a broad range of options along which it could support the ACP
countries.
“Reform of the EU sugar regime was urgent where maintaining status quo was not
an option. I am determined to reach a political agreement on a new support
system by December this year,” the report quoted Mariam Fischer Boel,
Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development.
The Economic Partnership Agreements (EPA) will be the vehicle for future ACP
market access to the EU for all products and will promote the diversification
products and markets of ACP region, helping them to move away from
commodity-dependent trade patterns.
The Commission, according to the report proposes to provide development
assisitance in the axes of enhancing the competitiveness of the sugar sector,
promoting the diversification of sugar dependent areas and addressing broader
adaptation needs.
StanChart to
increase agri lending
By Timothy Kitundu
The Standard Chartered Bank Tanzania is planning to increase the
agricultural lending in a bid to support the economy of the country by covering
more crops, more regions and more customers this year.
The Standard Chartered Bank Tanzania CEO, Hemen Shah said recently that the bank
will evaluate the supply chain finance whereby it will provide finance to the
business partners in a bid to make the entire chain supply efficient.
“We are also looking at opportunities to develop new treasury products for our
customers,” he said.
According to Shah, the bank is looking at revamping its services to the small
and medium segment with the aim of increasing flexibility in serving its
customers.
This, according to Shah, will include collateral flexibility, product
availability, and focusing on improving customer service.
“Our customer banking segment also has exciting plans for this year. We are
looking at increasing the growth of our personal loans business,” he said.
The CEO added that the bank would focus on serving their customers at their
doorsteps by recruiting the biggest sales force in the market. The bank will
also enhance of the interest rate payment to savings accounts holders and
repackage the fixed deposits account to offer more competitive rates.
Inflation rate
goes down
By Timothy Kitundu
The inflation rate for the December 2004 has gone down by 0.2 per cent against
November 2004 inflation figure which was 4.4 per cent as measured on a year to
year basis.
According to the National Consumer Price Index (NCPI), which is released by the
National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), December inflation rate stood at 4.2
percentage points.
The report released by the NBS shows that the December inflation rate went up by
1.0 per cent compared to November 2004.
The overall index, according to the report increased from 108.3 in November 2004
to 108.4 in December 2004, whereby some prices have for both food and non-food
items had gone down.
The report indicates that food items that had decreased prices were; rice, maize
grain, wheat flour, spaghetti, cassava, cooking banana, and beans. Others are
cowpeas, groundnuts, coconuts, cabbages, fruits, fish and cooking oil.
The report says, non-food items that had decrease prices were furniture, iron
(electric), hurricane lamps, kettles (non-electric), cooking pans, electric
bulbs, insecticides and basins.
However, the reports adds, prices of soft drinks (fanta and pepsi), clothing,
footwear, rent, toilet soap and tooth pastes had gone up. Other items that their
prices went up include; face and hair creams. Wrist watches, hand bags, and cell
phones.
‘Camomile’
herbal tea launched
By Angela Mazula
The Tanzania Tea Packers (TATEPA) Ltd. has launched a 100 per cent herbal tea
with no preservatives or additives. The product will be known as African
Infusion Pure Comomile that contains only organic camomile flowers.
Stamili Mlaponi, Executive Officer of TATEPA said that the herbs and flowers are
grown in the special farms by farmers’ and are hand picked for preserving their
organic nature.
He said that African Infusion has been awarded the prestigious international
ecocert label for its adherence to strict organic control measures.
KA to fly to Lubumbashi
By Angela Mazula
Kenya Airways will start a new route connecting Dar es Salaam with Lubumbashi in
the mid of February this year, said Kenya Airways Country Manager.
Lucy Malu, Kenya Airways country Manager said that there are a lot of business
people who fail to go through Lubumbashi due to absence of quick transport.
The area has recently seen a lot of mining activities which involved
international travellers flocking the region.
She said this will help the commercial link between Tanzania, Kenya and
Lubumbashi but it will depend on the demand of the customers to decide the
frequency of the flight. The price has initially been fixed at U$ 550.
One billion collected by LAPF
By Angela Mazula
About Tsh. one billion has been collected by the Local Authorities Product Fund
(LAPF) during the last three month as part of Tsh 6.8 billion that it owes its
members, LAPF Director General has revealed.
Speaking in Dar es Salaam last week, Aloys Bura, Director General of LAPF said
at a function in millennium Tower, he claimed that this was possible because the
LAPF has decided to be transparent about its problems in terms of debts it owed
its contributors.
He added that the government through treasury decided to directly deduct the
contributors in a bid to collect the remaining money.
He explained that good returns are expected from the project as almost 83 per
cent of the building is occupied and the money collected in terms of rents
amount to almost Tsh. 1.2 billion every month.
He added that it was worth investing in long term projects and the LAPF would
also venture in other areas of investment like constructing house in Mwanza and
would cooperate with Ilala Municipal in reconstructing the Ilala market and help
the middle and the lower class people.
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