Supposedly in defense of the interest of the tobacco farmers: ITGA.
Source: ippmedia.com (about IPPMedia)
Govt advocates responsible tobacco farming - ippmedia.com
November 28, 2011
The government has urged tobacco farmers to distance themselves from unfounded claims about the crop, and instead work tirelessly to grow the crop more responsibly.
Also, tobacco farmers in developing countries have been advised to transform their farming methods to match those of their counterparts in developed countries, including the use of modern farm implements and irrigation.
Minister for Agriculture and Food Security Prof Jumanne Maghembe made the call at the opening of the annual general meeting of the International Tobacco Growers Association (ITGA), which took place in Tanzania for the first time.
“It is time you emulated your colleagues in developed nations who grow tobacco in a modern manner by doing away with inferior farm implements, particularly the hand hoe. The use of tractors and oxen ploughs to facilitate the farming is still small, hence farmers’ average acreage is between 0.8 and 1.0 hectares per family,” he said in a speech read on his behalf by Permanent Secretary Mohammed Muya.
He urged stakeholders to check post-harvest losses because currently growers lost up to 30 per cent of the crop, adding that the sector should embark on capacity building in barns building, bailing sheds, storage as well as increasing processing facilities.
“However, despite all the benefits to our people and economies of our countries, the crop, under the umbrella of World Health Organization Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO-FCTC), in particular articles 9, 10, 17 and 18, is experiencing a number of critics and there is an urgent need for a balance that accounts for the interests of tobacco growers in many countries,” he said.
According to Prof Maghembe, the sector should continue to regulate itself responsibly as its future would depend on its ability to navigate through uncharted waters.
“Crudely-generalized statements against tobacco hold tobacco growers responsible for the relentless deforestation, basing on the hypothesis that all types of tobacco require conventional heat to be cured and that the only fuel used was wood.
"However, researchers have found that the sector accounted for 1 per cent of all wood consumed in developing countries and also curing some types of tobacco like barley uses sunlight,” the minister said.
Prof Maghembe said tobacco was the only sector that advocated preservation of the environment, including avoidance of land degradation by adopting a tree planting policy and records showed since the year 2009/2010 more than 20 million trees were planted each year by tobacco growers.
He mentioned various advantages of tobacco over other alternative means of livelihood that it enjoyed high price stability with a guaranteed market, hence helping to improve the quality of life in rural areas.
The minister said with a view to eradicating child labour in tobacco farming, ITGA in conjunction with the International Union of Food (IUF) and the International Labour Organization ILO, had established a special foundation on Eliminating Child Labour in Tobacco-growing (ECLT) projects in Malawi, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia and Kyrgyzstan.
Presenting her paper titled 'International tobacco control legislation and possible effects on the tobacco sector', Barbara Martelini of Ultoco Service S.A., a Geneva-based subsidiary of Universal Leaf Inc of USA, which is the parent company of Tanzania Leaf Tobacco Company, stressed that it was high time the tobacco sector worked more closely to ensure correct presentation of facts.
Speaking at the meeting, Director General of the Tanzania Tobacco Board,(TTB) Frank Urio said tobacco was an important crop for the development of the economy as it offered direct employment for well over 130,000 families countrywide.
“Apart from billions of shillings contributed to the central government in various taxes paid by the growers, leaf buyers and cigarette manufacturers, the crop also hugely benefits local governments in the form of crop cess. For example, last year alone crop-cess from tobacco countrywide was 14bn/-,” he noted.
Apart from the host, the meeting attracted participants from 20 countries, including South Africa, Argentina, Brazil, Bulgaria, China, Colombia and Croatia.
Others wrere USA, Philippines, India, Indonesia, Italy, Malawi, Mexico, Pakistan, Portugal, Kenya, Dominican Republic, Uganda, Zambia And Zimbabwe.
Comments