Rabat – The Moroccan company OCP Group is reportedly in talks to help Tanzania overcome its food security challenges through the establishment of a fertilizer factory in the East African country.
Reporting on January 28, Tanzanian news outlet the Citizen quoted the country’s Minister of Agriculture Anthony Mavunde as saying that Morocco and Tanzania are expected to start talks for “setting up a blending facility in Kisarawe.”
The news comes amid reassurances from the Tanzanian government to tackle the country’s food security crisis.
The Citizen reported that the Tanzanian government has given the Tanzania Fertiliser Company (TFC) $48.223 million in capital in a bid to revive the company and “ensure a sufficient supply of fertilizers at reasonably lower than market prices.”
Despite the government’s support, TFC will need no less than $361.67 million to rescue the company, the Tanzanian minister of agriculture argued.
The capital would allow the country to import 25,000 metric tonnes of fertilizer that need to be distributed across the country, the minister added.
OCP has not yet confirmed whether it is indeed discussing a deal with the Tanzanian government to build a fertilizer factory in the country.
Meanwhile, the group has been intensifying initiatives as part of its commitment toward helping countries across Africa meet their food security challenges.
Last week, OCP’s CEO Mostapha Terrab emphasized the continent’s potential in agriculture – stressing that achieving food security should be a priority for all governments across Africa.
“As a Moroccan company, we know this challenge is especially acute on our home continent,” said the OCP CEO.
“By 2050 Africa’s population is expected to nearly double,” he added, stressing the need for African governments to invest in food security.
Read Also: OCP CEO: Africa Has Potential to Solve World’s Food Security Issues
While Africa is home to 60% of the world’s remaining arable land, the OCP CEO said, the continent still lags behind when it comes to meeting its needs in food.
Morocco has been helping many countries to face food security through OCP’s donations or reduced fertilizer prices, benefiting thousands of farmers across the continent.
One of the recent initiatives was in December 2022, when the group donated 5,000 tonnes of fertilizers to Mauritania.
In October of last year the group also donated 25,000 tonnes of fertilizer to smallholder farmers in Senegal and 15,000 tonnes of diammonium phosphate fertilizers to Razanda in July of the same year.
Tanzania is part of the countries that benefited from OCP’s pan-African commitments in recent years.
In 2018, OCP Africa delivered a batch of 32,000 tons of fertilizers to help revive the Eastern African country’s agriculture.
