On 6th November 2024, the Deputy Permanent Secretary of Tanzania’s Ministry of Agriculture (Cooperatives and Irrigation), Suleiman Serera officially launched the Growing Together Project in Dar es Salaam.
The project is funded by Norway through the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation (Norad), and is valued at EUR 9.5 million equivalent to TZS 27.8 billion.
Growing Together is a five-year initiative that targets the Dodoma, Iringa, Mbeya, and Morogoro regions and will benefit 10 SMEs, 60,000 smallholder farmers, and two major off-takers involved in the production of rice, maize, beans, and sunflower crops in Tanzania.
The project will enhance access to low-interest loans, strengthen youth and women cooperatives, and support processors and farmers in accessing both domestic and international markets.
It aims to tackle challenges in low productivity, access to affordable credit for processors and farmers, climate change, and employment opportunities for youth and women.
Growing Together stems from a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed between the Government of Tanzania and the Kingdom of Norway that was facilitated by an official visit by Tanzania’s President Dr. Samia Suluhu Hassan to Norway on February 12–14, 2024.
During her visit, President Hassan emphasized the importance of the project in positively impacting Tanzania’s local farmers and processors contributing to Tanzania’s 10/30 Agenda goals.
The project aligns with the areas of cooperation outlined in the MoU including the empowerment of the private sector to invest in agriculture.
Tanzania and Norway
Norway and Tanzania have maintained a robust bilateral relationship, with Tanzania being one of Norway’s 10 partner countries for long-term development cooperation.
The partnership focuses on key sectors including private sector development, renewable energy, petroleum management, improved fiscal and financial management, and environment and climate change.
In July 2024, Norway granted approximately US$ 38 million over five years to two NGOs working in Tanzania: SNV (in collaboration with Farm Africa) received US$ 19 million to support agricultural SMEs, and The Royal Norwegian Society for Development (in collaboration with NORCAP) was granted US$ 19 million to improve food production, income, and climate change resilience for small-scale food producers.
Norway’s support extends to multilateral assistance and global funds benefiting Tanzania in areas such as health, education, and infrastructure, as well as humanitarian aid for the approximately 300,000 refugees from Burundi and the Democratic Republic of Congo hosted by Tanzania.
