Dar es Salaam: The Tanzanian government put forward amendments to the Sugar Act. These proposed changes aim to empower the National Food Reserve Agency (NFRA) to buy, store, and reserve sugar. This initiative is intended to tackle the shortage of sugar and prevent hoarding within the country, reported The Citizen.
Finance Minister Mwigulu Nchemba submitted the proposition while tabling budget estimates of the government for the 2024-25 financial year in the parliament.
The amendments of the Sugar Act confer to NFRA powers to acquire, hold, and administer sugar reserves with the view of maintaining its supply all through the country via curbing the hoarding by cartels.
Ethnic NFRA will spread its regulations on food security to cover sugar. These amendments are also proposing that 50 shillings per kilogram should be charged to function as a levy on sugar byproducts produced locally.
It is meant to raise funds to build capacities of the Tanzania Sugar Board, SBT, for its training and capacity building while also monitoring sugar production through expanding existing facilities as well as attracting new investments.
The government also wanted the Tanzania Revenue Authority to collect and distribute crop export and import levies. The collected fee half is going to the Agricultural Development Fund as well as the other half going to the Consolidated Fund for the government.
The change aims at efficiency in tax collection, agricultural sector development as well as actual availability of funds for functions.
